Application Portal Now Open for 2027 Fellowship Program at Monticello’s ICJS

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA—Thomas Jefferson's Monticello is pleased to announce that the Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies (ICJS) has opened its application portal for fellowships in 2027 and the first half of 2028. Applications close October 1, 2026. 

Since 1994, pathbreaking scholarship accomplished under the auspices of the ICJS has enabled Monticello to meet the challenges of telling a more complete story of the founding of the United States and its legacies. As a repository of public trust, ICJS builds its programs upon a foundation of rigorous research. The ICJS’s fellowship program has awarded more than 600 fellowships to researchers from around the globe whose work has advanced scholarship in the public interest.  

As part of this effort, ICJS relaunched its fellowship program in 2025, introducing two newly developed cohorts of fellows: the Semester Cohorts and Yearlong Hybrid Cohorts. In 2026, ICJS welcomed 20 onsite and virtual fellows to Monticello. The fellowship program will enter its second year in 2027. 

“We are excited to continue welcoming fellows to the ICJS through our virtual and onsite experiences,” said Nicole Brown, historian and director of the fellowship program. “The ICJS fellowship program is centered around building a scholarly community while simultaneously advancing public knowledge in the field of Jefferson Studies.”  

Fellowships are open to applicants from any country, at any career stage, and across many relevant fields, including but not limited to artists, civic leaders, journalists, graduate students, public historians, researchers, and scholars. 

ICJS is committed to supporting scholars at every stage of their careers and looks forward to welcoming participants into fellowship programs. Further application information can be found here. 

About Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello 

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation was incorporated in 1923 to preserve Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, in Charlottesville, Virginia. As a civic institution, Monticello seeks to increase knowledge and share the ideals Jefferson articulated in the Declaration of Independence through programming and scholarship built upon a foundation of rigorous research. 

Monticello is recognized as a National Historic Landmark, a United Nations World Heritage Site, and a Site of Conscience. As a private, nonprofit organization, Monticello receives no ongoing local, state, or federal funding. Visitors and the generosity of donors make Monticello’s twofold mission of preservation and education possible. For information, visit monticello.org.