A George Mason University history professor has been selected for a new fellowship designed to support research by junior faculty members.
Sam Lebovic of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences has been named one of the five Nancy Weiss Malkiel Junior Faculty Fellows for 2016.
The recognition is awarded by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation and comes with $10,000 for each fellow to support them as they work to become tenured faculty at their respective universities.
“It’s an honor to be recognized among the group of five,” Lebovic said. “It’s a nice recognition of the work I’ve done so far in my career.”
Lebovic said he will use the award to travel to Europe for five weeks this fall to conduct research on his current project, a history of American efforts to promote and manage cultural globalization in the middle decades of the 20th century.
He plans to visit the archives of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in Paris and the United Nations in Geneva.
“I’m hoping the research I do will provide the spine for a future book on American efforts to promote and manage cultural globalization,” he said.
“The college is honored to see our faculty members’ work recognized by awards like the Nancy Weiss Malkiel Fellowship,” said Deborah Boehm-Davis, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. “We constantly strive for excellence in teaching and research, and awards such as this advance the growth of our faculty and give our university and our students a great advantage.”
Lebovic teaches courses on American history that are focused on politics, culture, and the United States as a world power. He recently published his first book, “Free Speech and Unfree News: The Paradox of Press Freedom in America.”
He is well on his way to becoming a major player in his field, said Brian Platt, chair of Mason’s History and Art History Department.
“This particular fellowship program draws applicants from junior scholars in multiple disciplines and is extremely competitive,” Platt said. “It’s rewarding when these scholarly awards go to people who are also generous colleagues, and Lebovic is that as well.”