NTA Equity & Inclusion Travel Fellowship

The 2021 Annual Meeting of the National Tax Association will take place from Thursday, November 18 through Saturday, November 20 at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, MI. The Equity & Inclusion Travel Fellowship provides conference travel funding with the goal of increasing participation in and creating long-lasting relationships with the National Tax Association and its activities among underrepresented minority (URM) graduate students and early career Ph.D.s/J.D.s engaged in the theory and practice of public finance, including public taxation, spending, and borrowing. The Fellowships will cover hotel, conference registration, and a travel cost offset.

Underrepresented minority scholars face a variety of systemic barriers and may lack peers, role models, or mentors in their own departments and networks. Professional conferences, like the NTA, are a helpful place to build relationships outside of one’s own academic and professional settings. The aim of this fellowship is to provide an opportunity for junior scholars to participate in and network with the NTA community.

Eligibility
All Ph.D. or J.D. advanced graduate students (4th year or later for Ph.D. candidates, 2nd or 3rd year for law students) or early career graduates (fewer than 6 years since graduate degree) with interests in the theory and practice of public finance, who are members of an underrepresented minority group. Underrepresented minorities include persons who identify as American Indian, Alaskan Native, Black (not of Hispanic origin), Hispanic (including persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Central or South American origin) or, Pacific Islander. Eligible fellowship recipients will also be a U.S. Citizen, Permanent Legal Resident, DACA or Eligible Non-Citizen (as defined by FAFSA). Applicants must plan to attend the NTA conference.

Details
The travel fellowship is inspired by the successful American Economic Association URM Travel Grants and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management Equity and Inclusion Fellowships. Fellowship recipients will receive:

  • Two nights’ accommodations at the conference hotel
  • $599 to be used toward their travel expenses
  • Registration fee waiver
  • A complimentary one-year membership to the NTA

Recipients will also have the opportunity to be matched with a mentor. Additionally, job candidates on the market may indicate if they would like to have a practice job market interview conducted by a senior researcher.

Admission to Fellowship
The program will be able to accommodate approximately 5 fellowship winners (more if funding is available). If demand for the fellowship exceeds this number, slots will determined based on research interest fit with the NTA. Applicants will be notified about their admission status in September 2021.

Organizers
Stacy Dickert-Conlin, Jacob Goldin, Tatiana Homonoff, & Laura Kawano

Sponsors
Funding for this event was generously provided by the NTA and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

2021 Recipients

Felicia Farrar, Internal Revenue Service

Michelle Harding, Virginia Tech

Jetson Leder-Luis, Boston University