The Brooks Institute will consider applications for academic fellowships that have direct impact on animal law and policy in accordance with the Brooks Institute mission.

There are presently two fellowship programs:

1- Scholars Research Fellowship:

The goal of the research grants program is to support outstanding research that will advance the fields of animal law and policy. To be eligible for grants, principal investigators must be affiliated with an accredited academic institution or demonstrate a record of successful independent research.

Strong preference is given to proposals that the grant proceeds will be paid to and through an institution that qualifies as a U.S. public charitable organization.

Applications are reviewed two times per year beginning after June 1 and December 1 (with submission deadlines of May 31 and November 30, respectively). The application for the May 2024 review period may be found here.

Scholars Research Fellows

2- Emerging Scholar Fellowship:

The fellowship for emerging animal law professors is an academic-year fellowship for 2L and 3L law students interested in pursuing a career in law teaching and who seek mentorship and an opportunity to develop a scholarly agenda in the field of animal law. The goal of the fellowship is to increase the number of well-qualified persons who intend to pursue a faculty appointment in a United States law school and intend to make animal law a significant component of their teaching and research.

The application period for the 2023-2024 academic year has closed. The application for 2024-2025 will be available in Spring 2024.

2023-2024 Emerging Scholar Fellows and Mentors
2022-2023 Emerging Scholar Fellows and Mentors
2021-2022 Emerging Scholar Fellows and Mentors
2020-2021 Emerging Scholar Fellows and Mentors

3- LLM Fellowship:

The premier fellowship is designed for exceptional candidates seeking to engage in for-credit fellowship work while earning an Animal Law LLM in the 2024-2025 academic year. The targeted and ideal fellowship candidates must demonstrate: a commitment to pursuing the protection and rights of nonhuman animals; and either superb scholarship potential or superb practice potential. Candidates must also meet all application requirements for Animal Law LLM admission. Mid-career animal advocates who can take a nine-month sabbatical from their advocacy organization are particularly encouraged to apply. Fellowships will be available at the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark Law School and the Animal Law and Policy Institute at Vermont Law and Graduate School. In addition to joining a distinguished cohort, other benefits of the fellowship include a full tuition scholarship and related education expense stipends, academic and career mentorship with a faculty professor, and supervision for the rigorous pursuit of research.

The application for the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark Law School (2024-2025 Academic Year) may be found here. The application deadline is February 1, 2024.

The application for the Animal Law and Policy Institute at Vermont Law and Graduate School (2024-2025 Academic Year) may be found here. The application deadline is February 15, 2024.

2023-2024 Brooks Institute LLM Fellows

Separate from the Fellowships, there is also a Workshop Opportunity:

Scholarly Work-in-Progress Workshop:

The Brooks Institute is committed to facilitating high-quality scholarship in the field of animal studies and animal law. Consistent with this goal, the Brooks Institute is accepting applications from authors who would like to have a scholarly workshop convened around a work-in-progress. The goal of the workshops will be to provide constructive, scholarly feedback for academic work.

The Brooks Institute welcomes applications from researchers who would benefit from a workshop, either virtual or in-person. For projects accepted for a workshop, the Brooks Institute will coordinate logistics and cover pre-determined costs relating to travel, lodging, and honoraria to convene a group of knowledgeable peer reviewers with relevant, interdisciplinary expertise. Authors are free to propose persons who they would like to have participate in the workshop.

Proposals to workshop monographs as well as articles will be considered. The author may specify a preference for an in-person or online workshop format. There is a presumption that workshops for articles will be done online. The author will distribute a draft for participants to review prior to the workshop. Participation in the workshop is for feedback purposes only, and no offer (or requirement) of publication is being extended.

To apply to have the Brooks Institute host a workshop for your project, please send a cover letter explaining the project and your interest in a workshop to Info@theBrooksInstitute.org. Please specify whether it is a book or an article, and provide a sample chapter or portion of the article. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.