MacArthur Foundation: Encyclopedia II - MacArthur Foundation - MacArthur Fellowship

MacArthur Foundation - MacArthur Fellowship

William T. Kirby, a founding member of the board of directors and Chairman of the Board until his death, suggested that the MacArthur Foundation create the Fellows Program. It was his doctor, Dr. George Burch of Tulane University, who first brought this idea to Mr. Kirby's attention. The complete story of how this program began can be found at http://macarthur-foundation.blogspot.com/

The MacArthur Fellowship (sometimes nicknamed the "genius grant") is an award issued by the MacArthur Foundation each year, to typically 20 to 40 citizens or residents of the USA, of any age and working in any field, who "show exceptional merit and promise for continued and enhanced creative work".

The fellowship doesn't accept applications nor does it grant interviews. The foundation relies on anonymous nominators, who submit recommendations to a small selection committee of about a dozen people. The committee then reviews every applicant and passes along their recommendations to the President and the board of directors.

The entire process is anonymous and confidential. The first time a new MacArthur Fellow learns that they were even being considered is when they receive a phone call telling them the good news.

As of 2005, the monetary award consists of an unrestricted (albeit taxable) grant of $100,000 per year, issued quarterly for five years. The Foundation expects no updates or reports on how the money is spent; MacArthur Fellows are implicitly trusted.

The fellowship was referenced in an episode of Family Guy.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "MacArthur Fellowship", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki