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About Program

With funding from the Heising Simons Foundation, the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) is proud to offer the Start with Equity Fellowship, a 1-year fellowship program to prepare the next generation of changemakers in early childhood policy and research. The fellowship is for advanced masters-level or doctoral students, postdoctoral scholars, and early career professionals. 

The Start with Equity Fellows will work with CEP network members (and their mentors at their current institution, if appropriate) to conduct, review, and translate cutting-edge equity research that is applicable to early childhood education and informs state and national policy. As part of the year-long fellowship, Fellows will serve as summer interns at a policymaking organization in Washington D.C. (COVID-permitting), or remotely, to develop a better understanding of how research becomes policy.

Fellowship Design

Fellows will come together as a cohort twice a year for professional development (either in-person or remotely, depending on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic) and have the opportunity to attend CEP convenings where they will meet with a robust network of researchers, policy makers, and practitioners working in the equity research, policy or practice.  Fellows will receive a stipend to cover a majority of the expenses associated with the summer internship. Fellows must either be enrolled full-time in a master's or doctoral graduate-level program, be a postdoctoral scholar, or be early career professionals. For current graduate students and postdocs, your local mentor/supervisor will work with us to ensure that your fellowship work is aligned with your degree requirements. Fellows can be from diverse backgrounds and have diverse interests and experiences, but must articulate a clear interest in policy-related research as it applies to early childhood equity (0-10 years of age).

How to apply

To apply for the Start with Equity Fellowship for Fall of 2022, send the following to Janniqua Dawkins (jadawkin@asu.edu).

  • a cover letter,*
  • an updated CV,
  • the name and contact information of two references who will provide a letter of recommendation on your behalf

*The cover letters should be no longer than three pages, single-spaced, and include:

  1. Your interests as they relate to the Start with Equity Fellows Program,
  2. A description of the work/project you plan to complete during the year of the Fellowship, including how the work connects to the mission/vision of the CEP and what deliverables will result at the end of the year, and
  3. A list of CEP partners whose work aligns with your interests (see childandfamilysuccess.asu.edu/cep/team).

Applicants who come from underrepresented backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply. We are especially interested in applicants who can strengthen the diversity of the CEP.

All materials are due electronically to Janniqua Dawkins (jadawkin@asu.edu) no later than February 28, 2022.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact Janniqua Dawkins at jadawkin@asu.edu.