Purpose
The purpose of the Program is to identify and nurture a new generation of leaders on western land conservation issues by providing financial support to students in Master’s degree programs related to land conservation. The Program supports students who are enrolled in Master’s programs at participating universities, and who have demonstrated a commitment to careers as practicing conservationists of western land, either with a federal or state land management agency or a non-profit conservation group working in the region.
Participating Universities
The Wyss Scholars Program began in 2006 with selection of two Wyss Scholars from the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University and two Wyss Scholars from either the College of Forestry and Conservation or the Program in Environmental Studies at the University of Montana. The Wyss Foundation selected these two universities because of their national reputations for quality education and research on environmental issues and land conservation.
Wyss Scholars
Wyss Scholars are selected by participating universities during the first year of their Master’s program. Recipients are selected based on dedication, need, and merit. Dedication may be demonstrated by an interest in pursuing a career furthering land conservation in the West or involvement, past or future, in a specific conservation project or objective. Need is defined as the financial burden assumed by the student to secure the Master’s degree and is determined by the participating university’s financial aid office. Merit is measured by undergraduate grades, graduate school scores and grades, and recommendations, and recipients must also have demonstrated leadership ability, integrity and outstanding character.
Financial Support
The Wyss Scholars Program offers financial support for tuition, plus a stipend for a summer internship working on western land conservation for either a non-profit organization or a government agency. Successful graduates may also receive an award for student loan repayment if they are employed at a federal or state agency or a non-profit organization working for improved land conservation in Eastern Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, or Colorado for at least three consecutive years following graduation.
For more information on the Wyss Scholars Program at the University of Montana, contact:
Len Broberg Jill Belsky For more
information on the Wyss Scholars Program at Yale University, contact: Bethany Zemba
Director
Environmental Studies
Program
The University of
Montana
Missoula, MT 59812-4320
Email:
len.broberg@umontana.edu
Professor of Rural and
Environmental Sociology and
Director, Bolle Center
for People and Forests
Department of Society
and Conservation
College of Forestry and Conservation
The University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812
Email: belsky@forestry.umt.edu
F&ES Associate Director of Research and Postdoctoral Programs
Yale
School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
Sage Hall
205 Prospect Street
New Haven, CT 06511
Email:
Bethany.Zemba@yale.edu