American Institutes for Research Invests in the Future of Social Science Research through New Ph.D. Fellowship Programs

The fellowships are supporting students in the U.S. and Africa as they bring new perspectives to understudied questions related to systemic inequality

Arlington, Va. - The American Institutes for Research (AIR) has expanded its efforts to strengthen and sustain the diversity of research and technical assistance work conducted by scholars in the behavioral and social sciences through two new fellowship programs supporting Ph.D. students in the U.S. and Africa. The efforts are part of AIR's Pipeline Partnership Program(P3), which offers guidance, mentoring, and learning opportunities for the next generation of research and technical assistance professionals.

The P3 program is funded by the AIR Equity Initiative, AIR's $100+ million investment in research and technical assistance to address the underlying causes of systemic inequities and increase opportunities for people and communities.

AIR's P3-U.S. Fellowship has awarded two-year dissertation grants to six exceptional Ph.D. students at AIR's partner universities, which will be followed by one-year, paid post-doctoral fellowship positions at AIR. Fellows were selected through a competitive process, including input from an expert panel of academics, AIR Scholars, and AIR staff. The first cohort of P3-U.S. Fellows are:

• Fatima Frausto, University of Texas-San Antonio
• Ami Adjoh-Baliki and Devyn Brown, Howard University
• Roti Chakraborty, Kristin Hemingway, and Alexandria Johnson, Georgia State University

The research conducted by these fellows focuses on systemic inequities in areas such as education, workforce development, justice and public safety, and community health and wellbeing.

"We need more diverse perspectives in the behavioral and social sciences," says Rashawn Ray, vice president and executive director of the AIR Equity Initiative. "Through this fellowship, AIR is tackling barriers to dissertation completion, opening career pathways, and preparing future leaders in our field to use evidence as a tool for justice and equity."

In Sub-Saharan Africa, AIR's partnership with the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) led to the creation of the AIR P3-Africa Fellowship, supporting Ph.D. candidates with funding, learning opportunities, coaching, and social capital building. Recipients will be matched with an AIR senior researcher for additional support, mentoring, and networking. The first cohort of P3-Africa Fellows are:

• Gameli Adika and Raynold Runganga, University of Cape Town in South Africa
• Rachel Nadine Njowe, University of Yaoundé in Cameroon

Fellows were competitively selected from a network of eight universities that are part of AERC's Collaborative PhD Programme. Their research focuses on topics such as economic development, education, and gender equity.

"AIR is proud to invest in these distinguished researchers, all of whom have already made impressive contributions to their fields," says Ashu Handa, AIR Institute Fellow. "This program brings new depth to AIR's commitment to supporting Ph.D. researchers in Africa as they lead efforts to build more resilient and equitable communities across the continent."

AIR P3-Africa also partners with the Union for African Population Studies, University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and the University of Nairobi in Kenya to deliver workshops and trainings focused on research methodologies.

In addition to these new initiatives, AIR's P3 offers graduate students mentorship opportunitieswith prominent scholars, professional internships across AIR, and training and learning opportunities related to cultural competence in research.

Learn more about the P3 Fellows and their research.

About AIR
Established in 1946, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit institution that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance both domestically and internationally in the areas of health, education, and the workforce. AIR's work is driven by its mission to generate and use rigorous evidence that contributes to a better, more equitable world. With headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, AIR has offices across the U.S. and abroad. For more information, visit www.air.org.

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