Departmental Fellowships and Prizes
The Government Department annually awards three undergraduate prizes and two fellowships to support student research projects or internships. The Mavrinac prize is given to seniors and are normally announced at the Department’s reception for graduating seniors and their parents on Commencement Weekend. The Dubord Award is given to seniors, the Peterson Award is given to juniors, and the Ling and Mackenzie Fellowships may be awarded to a junior or a sophomore. All are normally announced at the Spring Goldfarb Dinner.
Applications for the Ling and Mackenzie Fellowships for Jan Plan 2023 will be live on this DavisConnects webpage on September 27, 2022. Students will submit a general application (please visit the DavisConnects student funding page to prep all essay questions and application materials) and then answer the following question before October 15, 2022 at 11:59 PM EST.
Please describe how this opportunity commits to a larger, coherent course of study or direction in personal and professional development as a Government Major.
The Mavrinac Prize is given annually to honor the best original research project submitted by a student. Endowed by the generosity of the Mavrinac family, the prize commemorates the life and career of Professor Albert A. Mavrinac, Dana Professor of Government emeritus. Professor Mavrinac taught at Colby from 1958 until 1992 and was the first Chair of the Government Department.
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
- 2019: Carlo Macomber & Ellie Krossa
- 2018: Nellie Lavalle
- 2017: Madeleine Neider
- 2016: Cameron D. Covall
- 2015: Shelby F. O’Neill, Samuel W. Parker, & Molly E. Robertson
- 2014: Joshua J. Rothenberg
- 2013: Lauren Fisher
- 2012: Laura J. Maloney
- 2011: Chris Gorud
- 2010: Cliff Vickery
- 2009: Daniel O’Sullivan
- 2008: Hande Yalnizoglu
- 2007: Alec N. Worsnop
- 2006: Jessica C. Varnum
- 2005: Michael W. Rutherford
- 2004: Laura H. Mistretta
- 2003: Stephanie L.. Hicks
- 2002: Kimberly R. Victor
- 2001: Theresa L. Wagner
- 2000: Shane Hoffman
- 1999: William T. Barndt
- 1999: Lyndall E. Schuster
- 1998: Elizabeth J. Ivry
- 1997: Cary T. Gibson
- 1996: Matthew M. McGinness
- 1995: Brett M. Santoli
- 1994: Erik L. Belenky
- 1993: William L. Charron
- 1992: Caroline Morris
Established in 1966 by Professor Albert A. Mavrinac, the Dubord Prize is given annually “in recognition of outstanding work in political science” to the senior with the highest academic standing in the Government Department. Supported by the law firm of Marden, Dubord, Bernier, and Stevens, the award is presented in memory of the Honorable F. Harold Dubord, a member of the Class of 1914 and Justice of the Supreme Court of Maine.
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
- 2019: Carlo Macomber & Madeline Taylor
- 2018: William Levesque
- 2017: Madeleine Neider
- 2016: Jane W. Wiesenberg
- 2015: Lucas L. Fortler
- 2014: Joshua M. Balk & Russell B. Wilson
- 2013: Lauren Fisher
- 2012: Benjamin G. Ogden
- 2011: Benjy Ogden
- 2010: Cliff Vickery
- 2009: Andrew M. Cook
- 2008: Kyle S. Smith
- 2007: Ivica Petrikova
- 2006: Jessica C. Varnum
- 2005: D. Jarvis Brown
- 2004: Laura H. Mistretta
- 2003: Sarah E. Barclay & Brooke P. McNally
- 2002: Kimberly R. Victor
- 2001: Milan Babik
- 2000: Jonathan B. Rickert
- 1999: Melissa J. Maguire
- 1998: Jonathan R. Bolton
- 1997: Susanna C. Montezemolo & Everett M. Fairbrother II
- 1996: Nicole Dannenberg & John J. Ryan
The Laurie Peterson Memorial Award in Government is awarded annually to a Junior Government major who, “through academic achievement and evidence of leadership and character, has made an outstanding contribution to the Department.” Laurie Peterson died in 1972 during her junior year at Colby, and in 1973 her family established this memorial award in her name.
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
- 2019: Ian Baum
- 2018: Carlo Macomber & Madeline Taylor
- 2017: Daliah Al-Shakshir & Jeremy Vale
- 2016: Laura A. Jensen & Madeleine F. Neider
- 2015: Jane W. Wiesenberg
- 2014: Lucas L. Fortler & Shelby O’Neill
- 2013: Joshua M. Balk & Russell B. Wilson
- 2012: Claire E. Dunn & Abbott G. Matthews
- 2011: Laura J. Maloney
- 2010: Benjamin G. Ogden
- 2009: Fiona Sheridan-McIver
- 2008: Clifford D. Vickrey
- 2007: Kyle S. Smith
- 2006: Ivica Petrikova
- 2006: Alec N. Worsnop
- 2005: Jessica C. Varnum
- 2004: Christopher Surprenant
- 2003: Laura H. Mistretta
- 2002: Sarah E. Barclay
- 2002: Brooke P. McNally
- 2001: Theresa L. Wagner
- 2000: Mark Paustenbach
- 1999: Jonathan B. Rickert
- 1998: Melissa J. Maguire
- 1997: Jonathan R. Bolton
- 1996: Susanna C. Montezemolo
- 1995: Nicole Dannenberg
- 1994: Brian M. Rayback
- 1993: Erik L. Belenky
- 1992: Karl A. Oliver
- 1991: Andrew Grossman
- 1991: David C. Leavy
In the Spring of 2002, the parents and friends of Ben Ling ’98 established a fellowship to honor Ben’s memory. Awarded annually, the Ling Fellowship supports a Colby Government major who undertakes either an internship or a significant research project.
While he was at Colby, Ben majored in Government and was involved in a number of internships and major research projects. A summa cum laude graduate of Colby, Ben went to Washington in order to pursue a career working on agricultural and ranching issues. He died of cancer in 2001.
Purpose
To encourage and support students participating in internships or undertaking major research projects during the summer, the Fall semester, or Jan Plan.
Student Eligibility
Any sophomore or junior Government major may apply for the Ling Fellowship, which is awarded on a need-blind basis. The Ling Fellowship can run from any period of time from June 1 of the calendar year in which it is awarded, through the end of the following January, i.e. a fellowship awarded in May 2020 may be used between June 2020 and the end of January 2021.
Award
The Ling Fellowship provides up to $2,000 towards expenses incurred during the internship or research project for which it has been awarded.
Program Eligibility
Internships may be either paid or unpaid, full-time or significant, part-time; the work of the internship must, however be clearly and significantly related to the student’s academic program or professional and career goals.
Research projects must be clearly connected to a student’s course of study at Colby, e.g., research for an Honors Thesis or major independent study project.
Application Procedures
Applications for Summer 2022 will be live on this DavisConnects webpage on February 28th, 2022. Students will submit a general application (please visit the DavisConnects student funding page to prep all essay questions and application materials) and then answer the following question before March 14th at 11:59 PM EST:
Please describe how this opportunity commits to a larger, coherent course of study or direction in personal and professional development as a Government major.
Any questions about the Ling Fellowship should be addressed to Professor Shea, x5357, [email protected]
Any questions about the general funding application process should contact Scott Lamer, Associate Director of Global Experiences at DavisConnects at [email protected]
Deadlines
Application Opens: February 28th, [email protected] 12:00 AM EST
Application Closes: March 14th, 2022 @ 11:59 PM EST
Award Notifications: April 8th, 2022 @ 5:00 PM EST
Post-Acceptance Requirements: Friday, May 20th, 2022 @ 5:00 PM EST
Recipients
- 2022
- 2021: Madeline Wehr
- 2021: Adwoa Nyame
- 2020: Rohnique Davy
- 2019: Anran Zhang
- 2018: Carolyn Jones
- 2017: Katherine Cabrera-Hunt
- 2016: Meredith F. Keenan
- 2015: Dylan K. Ciccarelli & Cameron D. Coval
- 2014: Leah E. Breen
- 2013: Pandit Mami
- 2012: Max B. Kanner & Abbott G. Matthews
- 2011: Madelaine Bergier
- 2010: Megan Booth
- 2009: Emma Hall
- 2008: Christine Gardner
- 2007: Emily Butler
- 2006: Michael Deheeger
- 2005: Jessica C. Varnum
- 2004: Adam Harvey
- 2003: Michael Shea
Established in 2016 by students and friends of Government Professor Cal Mackenzie upon his retirement from Colby, the Mackenzie Fellowship honors his 38 years of teaching in the Government Department. It supports a Colby Government major who undertakes an internship in the United States or abroad.
- 2022
- 2021: Mingwei Zhu, Emily Nyman, & Avery Marti
- 2020: Brian Riley
- 2019: Ethan vanderWilden
- 2018: Katherine Gillespie
- 2017: Wesley Zebrowski