Special grant will support graduate school education for U.S. Student Fulbright Alumni
New York, October 25, 2017—The Institute of International Education has announced a new Fellowship in honor and memory of the life and public service of international development pioneer Martin Kriesberg, to fund graduate education to help U.S. Fulbright alumni to build their skills to enter and succeed in public service careers. The Martin Kriesberg Fellowship is intended to prepare young professionals to work in fields related to international development, international organization affairs, public administration, conflict resolution, and public opinion research.
The Fellowship was created with an endowment gift from the family of Martin Kriesberg (1917-2005) to commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth and perpetuate his commitment to public service in the United States and around the world. One of his sons, Simeon M. Kriesberg, commented, “Our family is delighted to memorialize the life and work of my father by supporting the graduate education of Martin Kriesberg Fellows selected by IIE under the Fulbright program.”
American students who study, teach, or conduct research abroad on a U.S. Student Fulbright Fellowship will be eligible for the Martin Kriesberg Fellowship, in support of their subsequent graduate education at an accredited U.S. graduate degree program. Preference will be given to those entering U.S. graduate schools of public affairs, public policy, international affairs, international service, public administration, or similar fields.
IIE, a not-for-profit organization that administers the Fulbright program for the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, will select the Fellowship recipient as part of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program’s competitive, merit based selection process. Preference will be given to individuals who intend to pursue careers in government, non-governmental organizations, or academia.
Kriesberg held life-long convictions that an informed citizenry could engender effective government, that government could enhance the well-being of the people it served, and that national governments working together could make progress in solving even such intractable global challenges as poverty, inequality, and conflict. He acted on these convictions with great passion, intellect, and effect throughout a long and illustrious career, including 35 years working in the federal government, primarily with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and later evaluating food and development programs for the United Nations.
For most of his career at the Department of Agriculture he administered international programs, focusing principally on economic development and international organization affairs. Kriesberg stressed the importance of complementing new agricultural technologies with market and infrastructure development to enable farmers in poor countries to bring their crops to market and earn a sustainable income. He represented the United States in numerous international conferences on combating poverty in the developing world, and authored a number of books, articles, and reports.
Throughout his career, Kriesberg worked to improve government in the United States and abroad through more effective education in public service. He took leave from the Department of Agriculture twice to help establish schools of public administration, once in Israel under the auspices of the United Nations (1956) and once in Colombia under the auspices of the Ford Foundation (1962-1963). He wrote widely on public administration in developing countries. As an adjunct professor, he taught public administration for many years at local universities, including George Washington University and American University.
He began working in the field of international development in the 1950s, as the field was beginning to emerge, and was one of the founders of the Society for International Development, the first professional organization in the field. During the 1990s he served as President of the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area.
Kriesberg received a B.S. in Commerce from Northwestern University and a M.A. in Political Science from George Washington University in the 1940s, while working full time in the field of opinion research and at the War Production Board in Washington, respectively. He earned a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University in 1947, completing a dissertation on “Public Opinion in American-Soviet Relations.” He began his government career working at the U.S. Bureau of the Census, before moving to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He was married for 60 years to Harriet Munchick Kriesberg, and they had five children.
About the Institute of International Education
The Institute of International Education (IIE) works with policymakers, educators and employers across the globe to prepare students and professionals for the global workforce and equip them to solve the increasingly complex challenges facing our interconnected world. We work to build more peaceful and equitable societies by advancing scholarship, building economies and promoting access to opportunity. As a not-for-profit with 19 offices and affiliates worldwide, IIE collaborates with a range of corporate, government and foundation partners across the globe to design and manage scholarship, study abroad, workforce training and leadership development programs. For more information, visit www.iie.org.
Donor support helps IIE provide life-changing opportunities for students, scholars and professionals. Learn more about giving to IIE.
Contacts
Public Affairs