WMU Department of History: Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning Grant

The Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning at WMU supports diverse learning experiences that connect history with the arts and nature. Eligible applicants include all members of the WMU community, with a focus on undergraduate and graduate students. Grants of up to $500 will be awarded annually for activities like workshops, field biology, and traditional crafts, enhancing personal insights into historical contexts and environmental interrelationships.

Purpose of the Endowment
The Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning supports varied learning experiences that enhance awareness, understanding, and knowledge of the interconnectedness of history with the arts and the natural world. Grant recipients might participate in short courses in art or architectural history, in field biology learning experiences, in workshops in historic preservation or traditional crafts, in retreat experiences that emphasize an understanding of the natural world, or in other experiential learning activities that promote personal insight into the interrelationships between people and their environments, especially in historical contexts. When the endowment reaches a sum that will yield $500 annually, one grant of up to $500 will be made annually from the Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning. Should the endowment become large enough to support additional annual grants, the Peter J. Schmitt Endowment Committee may elect to award more than one grant per year. The Committee, may also elect to increase the dollar value of the annual grant, on account of inflation or other economic considerations, funds permitting.
Examples of Institutions Offering Fundable Experiential Learning Activities
(this may be included in application materials that go to grant applicants)
North House Folk SchoolTillers InternationalUniversity of Michigan Biological StationFarmers Museum, Cooperstown, New YorkCedar Bend Folk SchoolDriftless Folk SchoolJohn C. Campbell Folk SchoolSmithsonian Resident Associates ProgramSchool of the Art Institute of ChicagoOutward BoundAnd many other institutions and programs

Eligibility

All members of the Western Michigan University community, including undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, emeriti, alumni, and staff are eligible to apply for grants.To be eligible for this grant, undergraduate students must have completed at least 30 hours of course work at WMU, and have maintained a GPA of 2.50 or higher.