Baran Fellowships
Four Ohio Wesleyan Students Earn University Funds to Support Their Graduate School Goals
DELAWARE, Ohio – Four Ohio Wesleyan University students have earned competitive Baran Fellowships to fund projects intended to make them stronger candidates for graduate school admission and post-graduate fellowships.
The newest recipients of the university-awarded Baran Fellowships are Savannah Brantley of Fairborn, Ohio; Jennifer Garner of Oro Valley, Arizona; Timothy Page of Roseville, Michigan; and Callie Staley of Columbus, Ohio. Their Baran-supported projects are as follows:
- Brantley, an English-Creative Writing major, plans to use her Baran Fellowship funds to attend the University of Iowa's annual Summer Writing Festival from July 21-26. There, Brantley will take part in a weeklong workshop where, she says, "participants are expected to write 'rapid fire' memoirs every day of attendance for the purpose of workshopping the pieces." Brantley will use the experience to support her pursuit of a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree. "This opportunity would not just give me the space necessary to further develop and strengthen my writing, but to expose me to the rigor that would be expected of me in an MFA program."
- Garner, a triple major in Spanish, Pre-Medicine, and Biochemistry, will use her fellowship award to support studying abroad this fall in Pamplona, Spain. "One of my courses is a service learning course, and this will be provided in a senior residence," Garner says. "My main career goal is to become a medical doctor so any additional service in the medical field working with the community is extremely valuable. I need to learn how to communicate and assist the elderly population by being surrounded by them and watching their medical and physical needs. This service will also include some healthcare assistance. … In addition, I will continue to help monitor their nutritional behaviors and physical well-being. and learn all about the electronic medical system in Pamplona, Spain."
- Page, a Politics and Government major, will use his Baran Fellowship funds to support research into multiracial people's attitudes on foreign policy and nationalism. "I want to investigate and conceptualize how Americans with multiracial backgrounds and origins align themselves on the political spectrum and the process of how they construct their racial identities," says Page, who plans to pursue a master's degree in political science in American politics and political psychology as well as a doctoral degree in political science. He will be mentored by OWU assistant professor Brianna Mack, Ph.D., and plans to pursue presenting his work at such professional conferences as the National Conference of Black Political Scientists and The Midwest Political Science Association.
- Staley, a Theatre and Sociology & Anthropology major, will use her fellowship funds to support research in the United Kingdom and Germany to complete a thesis project for OWU's Palmer Global Scholars Program and a senior theatre project. Staley plans to examine queer performance, identity, and history in the two European countries and then write and stage a play incorporating the resulting information. "My research, and my play, are based around ideas of queer time and gender performativity, theorized by scholars like Muñoz and Butler," says Staley, who plans to pursue an advanced degree in theatre or anthropology. "I am interested in how I can use what I learn from this research into creating a play that defies traditional notions of performance, and the delineation between art and academic scholarship."
Ohio Wesleyan's Baran Fellowships were created in 2013 with a gift from graduate Jan W. Baran, Class of 1970, and his wife, Kathryn K. Baran, in recognition of the strong mentorship he received as an OWU student.
To be eligible for the fellowships, students must be in the university Honors Program or have an excellent academic record (usually a grade-point average of 3.7 or higher) with a high probability of success in a post-graduate fellowship competition. Recipients are able to use the funding to support travel-learning opportunities or individualized research or study connecting theory to practice.
Learn more about Ohio Wesleyan's Baran Fellowships at owu.edu/baran and more about the university's Leland F. and Helen Schubert Honors Program at owu.edu/honors.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation's premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature experience, the OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to understand issues from multiple academic perspectives, volunteer in service to others, build a diverse and global perspective, and translate classroom knowledge into real-world experience through internships, research, and other hands-on learning. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review "Best Colleges" lists. Connect with OWU expert interview sources at owu.edu/experts or learn more at owu.edu.
