The Center for Transnational Justice supports faculty and student research through opportunities including small grant competitions, research bridge grants, and conference and workshop grants.
These programs emphasize innovative scholarly inquiry on issues of transnational justice including but not limited to:
- Migration: including issues of immigration policy, refugees and asylum seekers, migrant workers, forced migration and human trafficking, and immigrant incorporation
- Economics, Politics and Justice: including issues of hunger, environmental policy and practice, global economic crises and development
- Human Security: including issues of human rights challenges and protections, health care and pandemic diseases, and transnational crime
In addition to responding to calls for proposals, faculty and students are encouraged to contact the Center Director concerning other funding opportunities.
New Initiatives for 2020-2023
Funding Opportunities to Address Issues of Systemic Racism
2023 Summer Faculty Research Fellowships
Support for Faculty
Summer Faculty Research Fellowships
Beginning in the 2020-2021 academic year, the Center for Transnational Justice introduced a new Summer Faculty Fellowship program to support innovative research on issues of race and racial justice, along with other dimensions of transnational justice.
Award Recipients:
2022-2023:
Dr. Mark Berlin (Political Science) for a project exploring the uses and sources of oppressive violence in liberal democracies, calling attention to understudied dimensions of police violence in the United States and the failure of restraining institutions on state abuses of human rights.
Dr. Sarah Gendron (Languages, Literatures, and Cultures) for a project exploring gender-based violence by security forces against women in conflict settings despite protections embodied in international and national legal frameworks.
Dr. Michelle Medeiros (Languages, Literatures, and Cultures) for a project redressing the invisibility of women as well as local and indigenous communities in scientific discovery, with ramifications for empowering local communties and identifying paths of economic development.
Dr. Enaya Othman (Languages, Literatures, and Cultures) for a project exploring the roles played by the revitalization of traditional Palestinian dress and sociocultural contexts in shaping patterns of transnational female activism.
Dr. Monica Unda-Gutierrez (Political Science) for a project exploring dynamics of local-level electoral democracy and impact of fiscal decentralization in Mexico, with lessons for other countries in the Global South and in democratic transition.
Dr. Desiree Valentine (Philosophy) for a project exploring the intersection of race, determinations of disablity, and rights protections for marginalized populations in domestic and international disablity law and practice.
2021-2022: Race and Racial Justice Research Fellowships
Dr. Noelle Brigden (Political Science) for a project exploring the impact of transnational racial and beauty norms and images and their impact on political understandings of citizenship, nation, and security in El Salvador.
Dr. Louse Cainkar (Social and Cultural Sciences) for a project exploring the ongoing challenges of Afghan refugee resettlement in Wisconsin with particular emphasis on the importance of resources that address issues of gender and expanding Muslim-based support networks.
Dr. Michael Donoghue (History) for a project exploring the impact of the US military intervention and bases in Cuba, with emphasis on broad patterns of cultural spillover as well as interactions between US military personnel, Cuba’s racially diverse population, and Haitian migrants.
Dr. Brian Palmer-Rubin (Political Science) for a project exploring the impact of transnational agricultural trade and investment patterns and the potential economic opportunities and challenges facing lower-income Mexican producers.
Dr. Stephanie Rivera Berruz (Philosophy) for a project examining of the role of Caribbean women intellectuals in exploring the impact of colonialization on understandings of modernity, racialized identity, and belonging.
2020-2021: Race and Racial Justice Research Fellowships
Dr. Jesse Cheng (Social and Cultural Sciences) for a project exploring restorative justice as a community-based path to address anti-Asian racism in the United States.
Dr. Javiera M. Perez Gomez (Philosophy) for a project exploring racial and disablitiy justice in the allocation of scarce healthcare resources.
Summer Faculty Fellowships/COR
In cooperation with the Marquette University Committee on Research, the Center for Transnational Justice has co-sponsored up to two Summer Faculty Fellowships each year. Applications are made through the regular Committee on Research SFF process.
2018-2019
- Dr. Sarah Gendron (Languages, Literatures, and Cultures) for a project on "Gender-based Violence against Women in Conflict Settings."
2017-2018
- Dr. Tara Daly (Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures) for a project on "Transpacific Exchanges between Bolivia and China: The Architecture of Freddy Mamani."
- Dr. Michele Medeiros (Languages, Literatures and Cultures) for a project on "Feminine Perspectives on the Discourse of Natural History: Challenging and Reshaping the Scientific Landscape."
2016–2017
- Dr. Mark Berlin (Political Science) for a project on "The Determinants and Effects of National Legislative Reforms to Prevent Torture."
- Dr. Alison Clark Efford (History) for a project on "Suicide and Immigrant Emotions, 1882–1924."
2015–2016
- Dr. Noelle Brigden (Political Science) for a project on “Surviving the Passage: Clandestine Journeys from Central America.”
- Dr. Bryan Rindfleisch (History) for a project on “’Possessed of the Most Extensive Trade, Connextions & Influence’: The Atlantic Intimacies of an 18th Century Indian Trader.”
2014–2015
- Dr. Sarah Gendron (Foreign Languages and Literatures) for a project on “Professing Hate: The Strategic use of Academia for the Justification and Implementation of Genocide.”
- Dr. Michael Donoghue (History) for a project on “Race, Identity, and Gender in U.S. Military Cuban Relations 1941–1964.”
2013-2014
- Rev. John Thiede, S.J. (Theology) for a project on the historic Jesuit Missions in San Ignacio de Mojos Bolivia.
- Dr. Chima Korieh (History) for a project on African Society in Nigeria and the Second World War.
Faculty Bridge Grants
The center offers small grants on a case-by-case basis of up to $1,500 to faculty to complete ongoing research projects. Please contact the center director for more information and funding availability.
Faculty Conference, Workshop and Symposia Project Grants
The center offers support for interdisciplinary projects that lead to scholarly publications, briefing papers circulated to policymaker or practitioner audiences, and/or on-the-ground programmatic initiatives. Projects must include scholars/practitioners from outside of Marquette, and opportunities for participation by graduate and/or advanced undergraduate students.
For additional information on past projects and how to apply for funding, please see the Symposia page.
Support for Graduate Students
Research Grants
Each year, the center offers grants to support research by graduate students enrolled in the Helen Way Klingler College of Arts and Sciences. The awards cover up to $2,500 of research-related costs including travel, data acquisition, and materials and supplies.
Application Information
The call for proposals with deadlines for admission is announced during the fall semester. The application consists of the following materials:
- Research proposal: No more than four single-spaced pages using 12 point font. The proposal must contain: a clear discussion of the puzzle or problem the project seeks to address; a brief literature review that identifies the significance of the proposed research in light of existing scholarship; a discussion of research methods the project will employ and how a center research grant will strengthen the project.
- Project budget consisting of a one-page budget narrative noting the intended use of grant funds, total project costs and other sources of support.
- Curriculum vitae/resume of two to three pages. If the project entails foreign travel, include information on relevant language skills.
- Letter of faculty support from a full-time Marquette faculty member noting their willingness to serve as an adviser/mentor for the project and commenting on the applicant’s ability to conduct the research.
Prior Grant Recipients:
2019-2020:
Patrick Kennelly, interdisciplinary doctoral program. Research project on "leadership in nonviolent social movements."
2018-2019:
Patrick Bethel, doctoral program in History. Research project on "contending conceptualizations of justice during Ireland's Land War year, 1878-1882."
Benjamin Nestor, doctoral program in History. Research project on "Einsatzgruppe C in the District Galicia: Ideology, Situational Violence and Mass Murder."
Seyfullah Ozkurt, M.A. Program in International Affairs. Research Project on "The Refugee Journey as Purgatory: Rohingya across the Archipelago of Exception."
2017-2018:
Lucas B. Greenwalt, masters program in History. Research project on “patterns of Racism and Nationalism in post-WWII Germany.”
Lisa Rose Lamson, doctoral program in History. Research Project on “Black Girlhood and Education in Baltimore City, 1820-1890.
2016–2017:
Steven Vickers, Jr., master's program in history. Research Project on "Emotional Responses to Terror Campaigns in Ireland and Italy."
Dane DeVetter, master's program in international affairs. Research project on "Refugee Access to Food Assistance in Milwaukee: Promoting Self-Sufficiency or Food Insecurity."
2015–2016:
Erin Wissler, master's in public service program. Research project on "Refugee Resettlement: Obstacles to Health Care Access" with a focus on Milwaukee.
2014–2015:
Catyln Origitano, Department of Philosophy. Research project on "Art During Genocide" with field work in the Czech Republic.
Alexandre Martins, Department of Theology. Research project on "Global Health and Justice in Health Care: A Liberating Approach from Below" with field work in Bolivia.
2013–2014:
Brittnea Roozen, Department of Political Science. Research project on prostitution and transient populations in Ethiopia.
2012–2013:
Kelli Nagel, Department of Political Science and Law School. Research project on human trafficking and the U.S. H-2A guest worker program.
2011–2012:
Molly Giese, Department of Political Science. Research project on the political economy of human rights in Brazil.
2009–2010:
Patricia Rodda, Department of Political Science. Research project on the transnational diffusion of LGBT rights.
Support for Undergraduate Students
The CTJ offers small grants on a case-by-case basis to undergraduate students to offset conference travel costs and expenses for ongoing research projects. Other intiatives include support for faculty to hire undergrate reearch assistants. Please contact the Center director for more information and funding availability.
