Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship

About the Fellowship    How to Apply    Recent Fellow Profiles       Past Fellows    

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About the Fellowship

Jeannette K. Watson Classes of 2013 and 2014.

The Fellowship experience allows Fellows to:

• Develop personally and professionally
• Grow as leaders
• Work on a team in the nonprofit, for-profit, and government sectors
• Spend their first two summers in New York and their third summer overseas
• Make connections and grow a network
• Present a more compelling application for national fellowships, graduate admissions, and jobs

The Thomas J. Watson Foundation was created in 1961 as a charitable trust by Mrs. Thomas J. Watson, Sr., in honor of her late husband, the founder of International Business Machines Corp., widely known as IBM. The Foundation initially used its resources in support of a variety of programs. In 1968 it created the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Program, which makes travel and study awards to outstanding graduating seniors at a select group of small liberal arts colleges throughout the United States. In 1999 the Foundation created the Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship in honor of the wife of Thomas J. Watson, Sr. 

 

THE PROGRAM 

The following sections expand on the purposes and activities of program components.

SUMMER INTERNSHIPS 

Matthew Corridoni in Ireland during the summer of 2013At the heart of the Watson Fellowship are successful summer internships. During their internships, Fellows experience the expectations, demands, and challenges of professional-level work in an office setting. The first year internships are in nonprofit organizations. The second year internships are in for profit, law, or government institutions. For the third year internship, Fellows will intern in organizations either overseas or outside of New York City. The Watson Fellowship arranges pre-travel orientation session and covers the costs of overseas travel and immunizations. 

SUMMER SEMINARS 

Fellows listen to a guest speaker at a seminar.The weekly seminar series is for first and second year Fellows. At these joint seminars the Fellows have the opportunity to engage in a conversation with thought leaders from New York and around the country. The seminars are a blended curriculum centered on leadership, cross sector collaboration, trends in the workplace, and innovative approaches to social change.

 

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS AND GROUP PROJECTS 

Each Fellow is expected to keep a reflective, professional journal for the summer. The journals are read and responded to by a Watson staff member. The staff member’s comments offers an opportunity for the Fellow to reflect on the internship and the summer program, and for the Watson staff to track the Fellow’s progress and address any issues that might prevent the Fellow from having a successful summer. 

Second Year Fellows have the opportunity to work in small groups on a New Venture Project. They will meet bi-weekly with an outside business advisor who will guide them through the process of selecting and creating a New Venture. In the past New Venture Projects have been thematically selected based on issues facing New Yorkers. Fellows are expected to meet frequently on their own with their group throughout the summer. 

CULTURAL EVENTS 

Fellows hiking at the Hudson Highlands, in Cold Spring, NYThe cultural program complements the summer experience and exposes Fellows to the vibrant cultural life of New York. These summer events are also an opportunity for to build a community among the Fellows, and connect with each other in a more social setting. Past cultural events have included Shakespeare in the Park, a West African Drumming class, a tour of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and a Staten Island Yankees game. 

ACADEMIC YEAR SEMINARS 

The academic year seminars provide additional professional development opportunities and help Fellows prepare for upcoming internships. These meetings, scheduled on Saturdays, provide a venue for Fellows to explore and develop new skills and to reconnect with Watson staff and peers. Examples of seminars during this time include resume writing, personal finance, public speaking, time management, and a panel on graduate schools. They are led by local thought leaders. 

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How to Apply

Prior to completing your application, you should meet with your Campus Representative Pielah Kim (pkim@mmm.edu), who will provide all application details. On the basis of the campus nomination process, each of the twelve participating colleges may nominate up to four candidates to be considered by the Citywide Selection Panel.

Each year the Citywide Selection Panel will interview finalists and choose fifteen Jeannette K. Watson Fellows. The Fellowship begins with internships in the summer immediately following appointment and requires a full-time commitment on the part of the Fellow.

For further details on the Fellowship, visit the following: http://watson.foundation/fellowships/jk

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Recent Fellow Profiles

Alice Luci Trye (Watson Fellow ’14):  Alice’s diverse interests have had her involved in a wide variety of activities from student government to sports to performing in musical theater. Though she is majoring in Biology, she is making time in her academic life for another passion, Journalism. A strong advocate for women’s rights and diversity efforts, Alice helps to create events as the Senator for Diversity for her college campus and has worked with The League of Women Voters to support their efforts as well. She comes from Winslow Township in New Jersey where she attended high school. For her first Watson summer, Alice interned at the Beth Israel Cancer Center. For her second summer, Alice worked at the Office of the Mayor of New York City. 

 

Sameera Uddin (Watson Fellow ’14):  Focusing on Political Science and International Studies at Marymount Manhattan College keeps Sameera involved in the issues of the day. She is active as a tutor for the Center for Academic Achievement at MMC, helping students with Algebra and American History and is Senator for the student government. Always ready to help others, Sameera has worked with the I Have a Dream Foundation to help prepare under resourced 8th and 9th grade students to improve their standardized test scores and boost their Math skills confidence. She arrived in the United States from Bangladesh only four years ago and is a graduate of Newcomers High School in Long Island City. Sameera’s first Watson internship was at the The Institute of International Education’s Scholar Rescue Fund. Sameera worked at the Conference Board for her second Watson internship.

 

Adam Warwinsky (Watson Fellow ’14):  Adam is a Interdisciplinary Studies major at Marymount Manhattan College. Both a stage actor and comfortable in the great outdoors, Adam helped to connect and maintain two hiking trails in the Adirondack National Park. He has also dedicated time to the Bucks County Housing Group as a volunteer to help organize activities for children, keeping the apartments landscaped and helped with food and clothing donations for tenants. He utilized his experience as an actor to assist sixth grade students in their screenwriting class through the After the Bell program. He comes from Lambertville, NJ where he attended high school. For his first summer, Adam interned with the Gay Men’s Health Crisis. For his second Watson internship, Adam joined the staff of New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

 

Alicia Perez (Watson Fellow ’15):  Alicia is a graduate of the John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science in Boston, Massachusetts. While in high school, Alicia went from staff reporter to Senior Editor while working for Teens in Print, Boston’s only citywide teen newspaper. She was also a staff writer for Feminspire and Jamaica Plain Gazette and was a student reporter for the New England Center of Investigative Reporting as a Martin Luther King Jr. Summer Scholar. As a complement to her love of writing and literature, she founded and was the co-headmaster of the Harry Potter Club, which established a well-rounded community of students interested in engaging with one another around their passion for this series. As a major in communications and journalism, Alicia plans to pursue her love of investigative reporting as well as a graduate degree in Political Science. Alicia interned at DonorsChoose.org in their Operations Department.

 

Emily Garcia (Watson Fellow ’16):  (B.S.) Business Management (B.A.) International Studies 
Aspirations - To have a global imprint on the world with my non-for-profit organization: We can. We Will. We dance, that will unite people and connect cultures. 
Jobs and Activities - Emerging Leaders Program; Tax Preparer, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program; Volunteer leader, GallopNYC; Dancers Dance Company • Hip Hop Choreographer and Performed at: Alvin Ailey 
Places I would love to visit - Brazil 
First Summer Internship - 92nd Street Y

 

Alex-Quan Pham (Watson Fellow ’16):  English and World Literature, Cultural Studies 
Aspirations - I want to be writing and actively contributing to addressing issues of race, gender, and sexuality in the world. 
Jobs and Activities - Editor, Marymount Manhattan Literary Magazine; Educational Tutor, America Reads 
Places I would love to visit - India 
First Summer Internship - Scenarios USA 

 

Bryen Pittner, of Pittsburgh, PA is a sophomore, double majoring in Communications and Dance, with concentrations in Creative Media and Dance & Media, respectively. She is part of the Honor’s Program and appears on the Dean’s List. On campus, she is a Cultural Peer Mentor for international students and holds an editorial position for “The Monitor,” Marymount Manhattan College’s student newspaper.  Additionally, she has spent Fall 2014-Spring 2015 interning with Performance Space 122, and her photography has been published in the online Wall Street Journal

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Past Fellows

Amanda Anzovino ’19 (Watson Fellow ’19)

Jennifer Acevedo ’19 (Watson Fellow ’19)

Bryen Pittner ’17 (Watson Fellow ’17)

Alex-Quan Pham ’17 (Watson Fellow ’16)

Emily Garcia ’17 (Watson Fellow ’16)

Alicia Perez ’15 (Watson Fellow ’15)

Adam Warwinsky ’15 (Watson Fellow ’14)

Sameera Uddin ’14 (Watson Fellow ’14)

Alice Trye ’15 (Watson Fellow ’14)

Matthew Corridoni 2013 (Watson Fellow ’13)

Erica Jackson ’12 (Watson Fellow ’12)

Julianne Willis ’11 (Watson Fellow ’11)

Alex Kane ’11 (Watson Fellow ’11)

Olivia Warren ’11 (Watson Fellow ’10)

Chris Perre ’06 (Watson Fellow ’06)

Will Bradford ’06 (Watson Fellow ’05)

Marilyn Ordonez ’05 (Watson Fellow ’04)

Jessica Murray ’05 (Watson Fellow ’04)

Melissa Rodriguez-Gonzalez ’03 (Watson Fellow ’03)

Isabel Sinistore ’04 (Watson Fellow ’03)

Kasia Reterska ’02 (Watson Fellow ’02)