Rich/Collins Community Leadership and Impact Fellowship
The Rich/Collins Community Leadership and Impact Fellowship (R/C CLIF) is a mini-grant program that has two central purposes.
- To expand Brandeis students’ engagement with and service to the greater Waltham-Boston area
- To strengthen students’ leadership capacity
The R/C CLIF mini-grants provide students the opportunity to develop and implement a community impact project over the course of one academic semester. The mini-grants, ranging from $500-$4,000 enable students to partner with the local community and provide immediate support to an important cause.
Through the fellowship and cohort model, Fellows receive pre-application support, leadership training, one-on-one mentorship, and reflection sessions throughout the program, as well as a final symposium poster. The program strives to be inclusive and accessible, providing a modest reward of $1,000 to all fellows selected.
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All R/C CLIF applicants will be expected to:
- Research unmet community needs
- Develop a realistic, sustainable program or event to address a significant need
- Establish a working group, or engage others as needed, to run the program during the project period
- Define an evaluation process and measure the impact of the initiative
- Create a sustainability plan for the project’s leadership and programming
- Actively participate in leadership training
- Educate the local community and Brandeis community about their cause
If you have questions about the program please contact Taisha White, the Assistant Director of Community Engagement and Leadership or RCCLIF@Brandeis.edu.
Any Brandeis student in good academic standing (GPA 3.0 or above) is eligible to apply. Each student can submit only one proposal in a grant cycle. If a proposal is not funded, you may reapply in another grant cycle with a new project or a revision of the original proposal. Students who receive grants may also reapply in another grant cycle with a new project or a new presentation of their funded project that significantly improves or enhances the quality or sustainability of the program.
Although we encourage students to recruit a team of supporters to help them with their project, students are to apply as individuals. Special exceptions may be granted to allow Fellows to apply in teams of two, but first, a special appeal must be made and granted by Department of Student Engagement.
Project Proposals
- Rich/Collins CLIF applicants will be expected to:
- Research unmet community needs
- Develop a realistic, sustainable, virtual program or event to address a significant need
- Establish a working group, or engage others as needed, to run the program during the project period
- Define an evaluation process and measure the impact of the initiative,
- Create a sustainability plan for the project’s leadership and programming
- Actively participate in leadership training
- Educate our local community and the Brandeis campus about their cause.
Proposals will not be accepted for projects that:
- Replicate, or only minimally enhance, an existing initiative
- Require additional funding beyond this grant opportunity UNLESS those funds are already in hand, or committed (with documentation), and are included in the budget
Priority will be given to projects that:
- Make a significant, or measurable, impact upon society
- Raise awareness among the Brandeis community
- Foster leadership, creativity, and engagement among Brandeis students.
