Call for Applications for 2009 Africa Workshop Fellows

--The 2009 Call for Applications for Workshop Fellows is Now Closed--

WORKSHOP ON ELECTIONS AND DEMOCRACY (June 21-July 10, 2009)

Sponsored by the American Political Science Association and the Institute for African Studies, University of Ghana

The American Political Science Association (APSA) and the Institute for African Studies at the University of Ghana, Legon are pleased to announce a call for applications from individuals who would like to participate in a June 21-July 10, 2009 "Workshop on Elections and Democracy: Exchanging African and Comparative Perspectives." The Workshop will be held at the facilities of the Institute for African Studies in Accra, Ghana. The organizers, with a grant secured from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, a private philanthrophy in the United States, will cover all the costs of participation (travel, lodging, meals, daily stipend, materials) for up to 23 qualified applicants (20 African, 3 U.S.). The working language of the workshop is English. Professional fluency in English is absolutely required.

The workshop leaders are Dr. Daniel A. Smith (Department of Political Science, University of Florida, USA), Dr. Kevin S. Fridy (Department of Political Science, University of Tampa, USA), Dr. Beatrix Allah-Mensah (Department of Political Science, University of Ghana, Ghana), and Dr. Ukoha Ukiwo (Department of Political and Administrative Studies, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria).

The application deadline was March 27, 2009.

Participants

The workshop is targeted principally at university and college faculty in the social sciences residing in Africa, who have completed their Ph.D. and are in the early stages of their academic career. Up to three U.S. advanced Ph.D. students will also be accepted. All Workshop Fellows must be engaged actively in an empirical research project in political science or an area of inquiry related to politics. Fellows should be working on a manuscript, paper, book chapter, or article that can be developed during the workshop into an eventual article-length publication.

Workshop Theme

The theme of the workshop is electoral systems and political behavior. The aim of the workshop is twofold. First, Fellows will engage a wide range of scholarship on electoral systems and political behavior in comparative perspective. Fellows will critically investigate the variety of theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of electoral systems and political behavior. Second, the workshop will be firmly grounded in applied research. We anticipate that by learning firsthand from one another about different types of electoral systems and political behavior, Fellows will want to probe various political practices in their own countries, as well as those elsewhere. The workshop will also devote systematic attention to issues of research design and strategies of data-gathering.

We are looking for Workshop Fellows who are interested in a range of issues linked to electoral systems and political behavior. We are especially interested in (1) electoral systems, including alternative types of systems, case studies, best practices, and limitations on the exchange of voting models; (2) voting rights and integrity, including voter eligibility, registration, disenfranchisement, election administration, election monitoring, and electoral fraud; (3) reapportionment and redistricting, including gerrymandering and noncompetitive state and local elections, the effectiveness of majority-minority districts, redistricting, and multi-member districts; (4) the dynamics underlying political behavior such as social conditions, group loyalties, core values, and party identification; and (5) campaigns—notably whether voters are competent to make electoral choices, the role of money, political advertising, free media and grassroots mobilization, and campaign ethics.

Each Workshop Fellow will be expected to present a piece of original scholarship to the group. This can be a research paper, conference paper, dissertation chapter, or other piece of written work that is approximately 20-30 pages in length. The workshop will include break-out groups centered on particular themes as well as time for participants to revise their research papers. Workshop participants are expected to attend the entire workshop, read through the provided reading packet, bring their expertise to bear in relevant discussions, and begin collaborative discussions on research projects.

Applications

Applications for participation in the workshop should be sent to the American Political Science Association electronically by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on March 27, 2009; please email applications directly to <africaworkshops@apsanet.org>. The final list of selected Workshop Fellows will be announced in late April.

Applications must be in English and include:

The completed Application Form (no longer available for 2009).
A detailed, recent Curriculum Vita/resume.
A 500-word description of the applicant's current research interests, how these relate to the workshop theme, and describes the empirical focus of the applicant's research and current status of the applicant's research project.
A 5-10 page written document that is part of the applicant's on-going research project. This can be a work-in-progress that is part of a paper, article, or chapter, and should tell the reader about the empirical and the theoretical/conceptual interests of the author.
Two letters of reference on official letterhead and scanned as electronic files. If the applicant is a graduate student, one letter should be a letter of introduction from the applicant's supervising professor. If the applicant is a researcher or faculty member, the letters can be from a former dissertation supervisor, a colleague or collaborator in the applicant's home institution or elsewhere, a university official, or an employer.

For questions contact us at africaworkshops@apsanet.org or call Helena Saele at (202)483-2512.