Sperry Fellows Program

Thanks to the generosity of the Sarah T. Sperry GP '16, '20 Academic Enrichment Fund, the Department of Religion launched the Sperry Fellows Program in 2019-20. Through this unique and innovative program, we aim to provide every Religion major who is writing an Honors Thesis with a "Sperry Fellow"—a scholar outside of Dartmouth who has particular expertise in the topic addressed by the thesis. During the thesis-writing process, the student is supervised by a faculty member within the department, but also maintains regular contact with his or her Sperry Fellow to ask questions, locate relevant sources, work through challenges, and receive feedback on drafts of the thesis as it develops. In May of each academic year, the Sperry Fellow is invited to travel to Dartmouth, if possible, to participate in the student's honors thesis defense and/or to attend the Department's annual public presentation of honors theses. Thanks to the Sperry Fellows Program, our honors thesis writers gain a valuable opportunity to be closely mentored by a recognized expert outside of the regular department faculty.