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Polis/PolicyLab Fellows Duke Political History Project

Fall 2022 Polis / PolicyLab Fellows Duke Political History Project

Since its founding, Duke University has played a central role in the development of generations of student-citizens, providing access to educational credentials that open the doors to social, economic, and political opportunity. Moreover, many of Duke’s students, faculty, and staff members have actively engaged in political leadership, activism, and democracy work. As part of a larger investigation of Duke’s institutional history that grapples with the University’s relationship with slavery and its posture toward racial justice, this project examines how Duke has shaped the development of citizens/politically engaged people over time. It also considers the role that the University has played in shaping the political landscape in Durham and North Carolina.

Polis/PolicyLab would like to engage a special team of research fellows to help with this project, which differs from customary PolicyLab memo projects. Duties will include helping with background research, assisting with original and primary data collection (e.g., archival research, gathering data from databases, helping with interviews), help with data processing (e.g., coding), fact checking, and more.

Fellows will work approximately 5-10 hours per week during Fall semester. The PSC and the Duke Political History Project are open to all Duke undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. These are hourly positions that are paid according to the Sanford School’s hourly rate ranges for student workers.


To apply:
Polis/PolicyLab Fellows will be drawn from the membership of the Polis Student Committee (PSC). To apply for the PSC, click here to access a short Qualtrics survey.

PSC Application Deadline; Submission of Resume and (Optional) Writing Sample*: September 15
RA/PolicyLab Fellows Interviews: The Week of September 26
Notification of Selection: The Week of October 3

*Please email resume and optional writing sample to Meg Bittle at meg.bittle@duke.edu

If you have questions about the Duke Political History Project or the Polis Student Committee, please contact Polis’s Senior Program Coordinator, Meg Bittle at meg.bittle@duke.edu.