From the Columbia College Website:
Micah McCrary, a graduate student enrolled in the new Creative Writing–Nonfiction MFA program in the Department of English, recently received a selective fellowship from the Diversifying Faculty in Illinois (DFI) Program, which includes a $10,000 grant.
Only 130 students received a fellowship through the program this year, and in fact, it is uncommon for MFA students to receive this fellowship, as the bulk of recipients are PhD students, according to DFI.
The DFI Program is administered by the Illinois Board of Higher Education and aims to help students in underrepresented groups earn graduate degrees as they work toward a career as a faculty or staff member at an institution of higher education in Illinois. Fellows have the option of reapplying for another academic year when their fellowship is complete.
McCrary, also a freelance journalist, said receiving this fellowship will certainly help him with his future teaching endeavors.
“I'd ultimately like to work in higher education; teaching, research, and administration are all interests of mine at the moment, and that's something I'd very much like to see through,” he said. “[But right now], I've been having a great time being embedded in the academics of my program at Columbia.”
Congratulations, Micah!
