A founding member and major benefactor of Biographers International Organization (BIO), acclaimed author Kitty Kelley is once again demonstrating her commitment to her preferred literary genre by endowing the Kitty Kelley Dissertation Fellowship in Biography. The $25,000 award will be given annually to a promising doctoral student at work on an English-language biography of one or more individuals.

“BIO is delighted to offer this exciting opportunity for a Ph.D. student writing a biography as their dissertation,” says BIO committee chair Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina. “Kitty Kelley’s generosity in funding a biographical project at the dissertation level will go a long way to encourage the writing of biography at the final stages of academic training.”

The bestselling Kelley, who also serves on the Independent’s board of directors, adds that “biography is the art of telling a life story. By exploring the past, we illuminate the present and enlarge the future. I hope this dissertation fellowship opens a wide world of ideas and imagination coupled with potential and purpose.” 

Applications for the inaugural award are being accepted through January 15, 2025. Learn more about the fellowship and its eligibility requirements here.