Students from across the U of A System are invited to submit applications for mini-grants awarded through an endowment honoring James L. “Skip” Rutherford III upon his retirement as dean of the U of A Clinton School of Public Service in 2021.

Grants of up to $1,000 will be awarded to students for expenses such as technology, conference registration, interview expenses, travel, test preparation, books, equipment or other supplies where a student can demonstrate need through the application process. 

This will be the inaugural year for awards from the endowment, which will be given out each spring. 

"As a student, I was fortunate to receive help from others, and learned firsthand that little things mean a lot,” Rutherford said. “As a dean, I saw many financial challenges faced by students and was again reminded just how helpful a boost along the way can be. I’m honored that this endowment was established in my name, and I hope these grants help provide opportunities and open doors for others."

The endowment was established at the U of A Foundation to honor Rutherford and provide support to student leaders across the U of A System. Undergraduate and graduate students from any U of A System campus are eligible to apply for grants, which will be awarded by a committee appointed by U of A System vice president for academic affairs, Michael Moore, in accordance with the terms of the endowment. 

The application process requires students to submit information about themselves and their proposed use of grant funding, along with contact information and a letter of recommendation from a faculty, staff or administrative adviser at their home campus. The deadline for submission is April 11, 2022.

Click here to submit an application form. After completing the form, students are required to submit: 1) a letter describing their grant proposal, 2) a resume and 3) a letter of recommendation from a home campus faculty, staff or administrative adviser. These documents should be emailed as PDF files to bbeaumont@uasys.edu. 

For questions about the grant process, please contact Ben Beaumont at bbeaumont@uasys.edu or 501-686-2531.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas’ economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the top 3% of U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.