Curriculum Vitae

MELANIE MEINZER, PH.D.

EXPERIENCE IN FELLOWSHIPS & HIGHER ED

SEPT 2021 – PRESENT

 

AMERICAN COUNCIL OF LEARNED SOCIETIES LEADING EDGE FELLOW

– Developed and implemented an organization-wide evaluation plan at The Center for Cultural Power, a BIPOC-led organization that supports artists through fellowships and trainings;
– Led data analysis and reporting for a quantitative/qualitative evaluation of the Disruptors Fellowship, a professional development program that helps screenwriters of color break into Hollywood;
– Codified organizational values and practices around culturally-responsive and participatory evaluation and secured staff and stakeholder buy in.

JUNE 2020 – JULY 2021

FOUNDING DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF NATIONAL FELLOWSHIPS
THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO

– Doubled the number of students applying for prestigious fellowships, producing UTEP’s first two Fulbright grantees in six years, plus 22 other student awards including the NSF-GRFP and Gilman Scholarships;
– Launched the Hawkins Scholarship, modeled after the Rhodes Scholarship, to build a pipeline of students applying for national and international fellowships;
– Developed a five year strategic plan to build a culture of fellowships on campus by partnering with deans and faculty across the liberal arts and sciences, the honors program, study abroad and the graduate school;
– Facilitated 25+ fellowship information sessions and oversaw applicant support programs for 2,000+ BIPOC students including a writing support program for fellowship applicants, two pipeline programs for undergraduate and graduate students, and a summer Fulbright workshop series; 
– Hired, trained, and managed four staff remotely, created the department’s budget and evaluation plan;
– Designed the departmental website, digital and print marketing materials.

JUNE 2019 – JUNE 2020

DIRECTOR OF MELLON FELLOWSHIPS
THE INSTITUTE FOR CITIZENS AND SCHOLARS

– Administered the Career Enhancement Fellowship for Junior Faculty and a suite of MMUF post-baccalaureate fellowships including the MMUF Dissertation Fellowship and MMUF Travel & Research Grants;
– Led strategic planning, donor relations, grant writing, recruitment, selection, evaluation and reporting for grants from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation totaling $4 million;
– Designed in-person and online professional development programs for 300+ BIPOC scholars including a weeklong faculty symposium and two Graduate School Bootcamps;
– Determined criteria used to evaluate candidates, managed external selection committees, and reviewed 350+ fellowship applications;
– Facilitated focus groups and designed pre- and post-program surveys to assess program impact.

SEPT 2018 – MAY 2019

CONSORTIUM FOR FACULTY DIVERSITY POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
DENISON UNIVERSITY, ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES PROGRAM

– Taught upper-division undergraduate courses on Environmental Justice and Global Environmental Politics.

AUG 2017 – JUNE 2018

VISITING ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
ST. OLAF COLLEGE

– Mentored students applying for fellowships, including one who was awarded a Boren Scholarship;
– Created and taught courses including “Decolonizing International Relations” and “Middle Eastern Politics and Identity.”

JUNE 2008 – JULY 2011

DEPUTY HEAD OF POLITICAL, PRESS, AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS
THE BRITISH CONSULATE-GENERAL IN BOSTON

– Administered the British Marshall Scholarship for the New England region, recruited applicants, managed selection committees, facilitated selection meetings and finalist interviews.

SELECT FELLOWSHIPS & AWARDS

AMERICAN COUNCIL OF LEARNED SOCIETIES LEADING EDGE FELLOWSHIP

CONSORTIUM FOR FACULTY DIVERSITY POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP

UCONN HUMANITIES INSTITUTE DRAPER DISSERTATION FELLOWSHIP

UCONN HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTE RESEARCH GRANT

DAVID L. BOREN FELLOWSHIP (WEST BANK)

CRITICAL LANGUAGE SCHOLARSHIP (ARABIC)

UCONN MULTICULTURAL SCHOLARS FELLOWSHIP

UCONN PROVOST'S RECOGNITION FOR TEACHING EXCELLENCE

UCONN POLITICAL SCIENCE PREDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP

SELECT PRESENTATIONS

FEB 2022

Invited talk: “Beyond Transferable Skills: Centering Your Values in the Job Search” at The University of Connecticut, Political Science Department, Storrs, CT.

NOV 2021

“Learning is Power,” presenting an organization-wide evaluation, learning & impact strategy for The Center for Cultural Power, Oakland, CA.

AUG 2021

“Fellowships 101: An Introduction to National & International Awards” at The Black United Fund of Oregon, Portland, OR.

MAR 2019

“Co-opted Consciousness: Aid (In)dependence and Popular Education in the West Bank” on the panel The Impacts of External Actor and Donor Support for Grassroots Nonviolent Activism and Social Movements at the International Studies Association Conference in Toronto, Canada.

MAR 2019

“Beyond “Polite” Resistance: Political Consciousness in Palestinian Education” on the panel The Role of Peace Education in Conflict Zones at the International Studies Association Conference in Toronto, Canada.

JUN 2018

“The Adaptation Imperative: Global Climate Change and the Urgency of Local Action” at the Institute of Political Science at Leiden University, the Netherlands.

APR 2018

“Popular Education as Development Praxis in the West Bank” on the panel Palestine and Rule of Power: Resistance, Sovereignty, and Local and International Governance at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA.

MAR 2018

Invited talk: “Foreign Aid & Community Education in the West Bank” at Middle East Peace Now, Minneapolis, MN.

SEP 2017

Invited talk: “Statelessness and the Obligation to Assist: A Panel Discussion on the Past, Present, and Future of the Human Rights Regime” at  St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN.

FEB 2017

“Contested Consciousness: Foreign Aid and Education in the West Bank” at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD.

MAY 2016

“Donors, NGOs and Political Consciousness in Palestinian Education” at the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, Ramallah, Palestine.

DEC 2015

Invited workshop: “English Language Skills for the Job Market” at the Afkar Organization for Educational and Cultural Development, Ramallah, Palestine.

JUN 2015

Invited webinar: “The Big Picture of Climate Adaptation in Connecticut,” for State and Municipal Planning Officials, Center for Land Use Education & Research, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT.

APR 2015

“Negotiating the Post-Liberal Peace: The Hidden Transcripts of Aid Dependence and Resistance Education in the West Bank” at the Society for Psychological Anthropology Biennial Conference, Boston, MA.

NOV 2014

“The Impact of Foreign Aid on Political Consciousness in Palestinian Education” at the Middle East Studies Association Annual Conference in Washington D.C.

MAY 2014

Invited talk: “Climate Adaptation Glocality: Policy Progress Among Connecticut Towns” with M. Boyer and A. Bilich at the Connecticut Adaptation Academy, University of Connecticut at Avery Point.

MAR 2014

“Climate Adaptation in an Evolving Global Policy Landscape: Connecticut Towns Responding to Press and Pulse” with M. Boyer, and A. Bilich at the International Studies Association Conference in Toronto, Canada.

PUBLICATIONS

IN PROGRESS

Book chapter: “Palestinian Popular Education Post-Oslo.”

2022

Op-ed: “Closing the Fellowships Diversity Gap” in Insider Higher Ed.

2019

Book chapter: “Solidarity Donors and Popular Education in the West Bank” in Palestine and the Rule of Power: Resistance, sovereignty and Local and International Governance. Palgrave MacMillan.

2019

E-magazine article: “The Possibilities and Limitations of ‘Solidarity Aid’ to the Palestinians” in Jadaliyya, a journal of the Arab Studies Institute.

2019

Op-ed: “How to unlock a just peace” in Alliance Magazine, vol. 24 no. 2 (June).

EDUCATION

PH.D. POLITICAL SCIENCE
THE UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

M.A. POLITICAL SCIENCE
THE UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

B.A. POLITICAL SCIENCE
ST. OLAF COLLEGE

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