Jan Lopez Wood Fellowship 

With the generous support of long-time benefactors, Jan and Bill Wood, Whittier College has established The Jan Lopez Wood Fellowship in Studio Arts. 

The Woods have created this fellowship to financially support the efforts of committed and high-achieving students in the visual arts. The existence of this fellowship is a statement by the Woods and the College that the visual arts are important in the realm of human endeavor and consequently worthy of support.

Eligibility

• First years, sophomores, or juniors in good academic standing
• Open to Studio Art majors or, students minoring in Studio Art 
• Open to Whittier Scholar Program students with an approved Educational Design that includes at least six studio art classes. Please note: A copy of the Educational Design must be included in the application package.

Selection Criteria

• Demonstrate academic excellence.
• Demonstrate artistic merit.
• Merit of proposed project.

Program Benefits

An award of $2,000 will be awarded to one student annually. Typically, the award will go to a new student each year, but past recipients are eligible to apply. The distribution of the fellowship award funds will be as follows:

• A stipend of $1,000 for project-related costs (usually art supplies, but possibly for project-related travel, living expenses, or other expenditures required by the project).
• A  scholarship of $1,000 will be applied towards tuition upon completion of the project. 
• The faculty mentor will also receive a stipend of $500 upon completion of the project. 

The most likely departure from this division of funds is reducing the tuition scholarship and allocating those funds to project-related costs. An applicant's project proposal may include a budget adjustment of this type. 

Timeline: Applications are submitted, a selection is made in the spring, and the project is completed during the following academic year.  It is possible, however, that the project will be conducted, at least in part, during the summer following the selection of the recipient.

Applying to the Program

The application is due on March 4, 2024. Use this guide to gather your application documents. Request these items two weeks prior to the deadline.

A complete application consists of:

• Unofficial academic transcripts.
• Current semester Course Progress Report for each 3-4 credit course you are enrolled in.
• Signed sample Student Contract.
• Signed Mentor Contract.
• Signed Sponsor Endorsement.
• A reference contact from someone outside your major and the project’s area of focus. This can be a faculty member, or when applicable to the project, a personal reference (e.g., employer, internship supervisor, volunteer coordinator).
• A 500-word essay explaining how this fellowship will advance your development as an artist.  Describe your background, goals, and successes to date as an artist.  You may include images as a supplement to this statement.
• A 1000-word essay describing in detail your proposed project. Be sure to address the physical properties (medium, technique, format, etc.) and the conceptual dimensions (ideas, themes, concepts) of the work you would like to create.  Also include a budget (not part of the word count limit) outlining how you expect to spend the portion of the fellowship devoted to project expenditures.  Images or diagrams will usually be included as a component of the project proposal.
• Selected semi-finalists may be interviewed. 

Selection Process

After reviewing all applications, the selection will be made by a committee consisting of all full-time studio faculty members in the Department of Art and Visual Studies. 

Fellowship Advisor

Professor David Sloan
dsloan@whittier.edu

Past Fellows

Estasia McGlothlin (2023)
Sophie Fudim (2022)
Elisa Marshburn (2021)
Gabriella Rodriguez (2020)
Priscilla Hernandez (2019)
Priscilla Jimenez (2018)