Gerald W. Halmo Geography Scholars Program

In memory of Gerald W. Halmo (UW Geography B.A., 1960), this program provides financial support to undergraduate geography majors to support their research, volunteering, or other projects that benefit a community and further their development as a geographer. The recipients of this award will complete a research internship in the spring quarter with one of the following Department of Geography labs/projects:

  • Anti-Eviction Lab: This lab brings together spatial, racial, and technological justice collective projects with student researchers. Housed at University of Washington and led by Erin McElroy, it prioritizes collaborative knowledge making with groups such as the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project. One of its current focuses is Landlord Tech Watch aimed at producing scholarship and popular education materials related to the property technology industry.
  • Engaging Care Project: This project's researchers are advancing caring labor research and expanding our understandings and theorizations of care. The Engaging Care Project focuses on the experience of workers, and frequently engages with local labor and social justice organizations in its research and public events. Currently the Engaging Care Project is focused on policy research to support enhancing basic labor rights for domestic workers in Washington State. Domestic workers (house cleaners, nannies, home care workers and gardeners) have long been excluded from many of the employment and labor protections enjoyed by other workers at the federal and state levels.
  • “Dream Palaces — Black Independent Cinemas”: This digital humanities project maps Black-owned or Black-administered movie theaters as key sites of subversion of a racialized film industry as well as of articulation of an alternative, communal, Black cinematic ethos in service of marginalized Black communities. This research-action project is co-produced in collaboration with the Lagos-based nomadic film collective, Monangambee. It includes four main components: an interactive digital map; a nomadic library; public space interventions; and a series of virtual screenings. 

We encourage applications from geography undergraduate students who wish to deepen their research skills and professional development through community-engaged learning in the department. 

Open to all geography undergraduate students, we embrace applications from majors who are members of underrepresented groups, first generation, of any citizenship status, and those experiencing financial barriers that would otherwise prevent them from being able to participate in an internship, community-based research or other similar opportunities.

Deadline for applications is Sunday, February 1, 2026, at 5:00 PM Pacific Time. (Selected applicants will be invited for an interview during the week of February 9-13, and award recipients will be notified by mid-March 2026.)

APPLY NOW

Information Session 

Join us for an information session on Zoom on Thursday, October 30, 2025, 3:30-4:20 PM!

Register Now

Learning Goals

By the end of the research internship, participating students will learn how to do the following:

  • Apply their study of geography to research with real-world impacts, challenging assumptions and systemic inequities across myriad spaces.
  • Develop, practice and improve career readiness competencies such as career & self-development, communication, critical thinking, professionalism, teamwork and technology.
  • Articulate a unique perspective on the significance of the research experience to their academic and professional pathway.

Eligibility

Financial Details

This award provides $2,000 to the student for 100 hours of work by them for the group or individual(s) who are providing community benefits.

  • Half of the stipend is disbursed at the beginning of the quarter of the project, half at the end after the award recipient submits 300 words to the Geography Advising Office describing highlights of what they learned, how the project affected their thinking, and how the project has benefited their professional development as a geographer.
  • Please be aware that this funding may count towards financial aid eligibility and could disrupt a current financial aid package. If you have concerns regarding financial aid implications, please talk with department advising staff and UW Office of Student Financial Aid.

Application Information

Students must submit the following in the online application form:

  • Select the research internship position(s) you are interested in and provide a brief statement about your interest in the research internship(s) you have selected.
  • List your top 3 skills relevant to the internship(s) you selected. Provide at least one STAR story to describe an experience in which you demonstrated one or more of these skills. To compose your STAR story, include 1 sentence for each of the following prompts:
    • Situation: the context (work place, project, paper, research, event)
    • Task: the goals/objectives (what you were supposed to do)
    • Action: how you used your strengths to achieve those tasks/goals (in detail, specifically)
    • Result: the outcomes (tangible & intangible). If result wasn’t entirely positive say what you learned or would do differently next time.
  • Upload your resume or CV targeted to the internship you are applying for.
  • Note your available times for a 30-minute interview during the week of February 10-14, 2025.

Questions/Contact

If you have any questions, please contact Nell Gross, Director of Academic Services, at ngross@uw.edu

Visit Internships & Experiential Learning for resources to support your search for opportunities. Additional professional development resources are available in the College to Career main menu.

APPLY NOW

Past Award Recipients

Share