American University Fellowship with the Public Diplomacy Council of America

Hans "Tom" Tuch PDCA Fellowship

The Public Diplomacy Council of America(PDCA) offers an annual fellowship to an outstanding graduate student in either the School of Communication or the School of International Service at American University (AU) in Washington, DC. As a PDCA-AU collaboration, this fellowship reflects the PDCA’s commitment to encouraging the academic study of public diplomacy while engaging the next generation of practitioners.

Olivia Chavez, 2019-2021 Fellow, poses with last year’s Fellow Hunter Martin at a First Monday Forum presentation. Photo credit: Bruce Guthrie

The fellowship provides recipients with direct experience in the field of public diplomacy while working closely with accomplished members of the PDCA. The fellowship intends to complement and enhance the fellow’s graduate education while at AU. Since 2013 the PDCA Fellowship has offered AU graduate students the opportunity to bring their academic and professional interests together to promote a broader understanding of public diplomacy.
Past recipients appreciate the opportunities the fellowship provides to work closely with public diplomacy professionals, both practitioners, and academics, to gain a greater understanding of the field. PDCA fellows are able to integrate their academic priorities in international communication, cultural relations, media and marketing, and other related fields to gain exposure to varied careers in public diplomacy. The purpose of the fellowship is to promote PDCA’s core mission, support ongoing program activities, and develop the professional capabilities of the recipient.

The late Hans “Tom” Tuch, one of the founding fathers of modern U.S. public diplomacy, in his home office. Photo c/o Tuch family.

History:

In August 2021, The PDCA Fellowship was renamed to honor the legacy of Hans “Tom” Tuch, one of the original founders of the Public Diplomacy Council. On July 14th, 2021, the PDCA Board decided to allocate the majority of his generous bequest as an endowment to sustain the Fellowship. Hans Tuch, a pioneer of United States public diplomacy, died on September 7, 2020, at his residence in Bethesda, MD at the age of 95. After a long career serving the U.S. Information Agency and State Department, he continued to write and teach on the subject. Tuch was a founding member of the Public Diplomacy Council. His book Communicating with the World: U.S. Public Diplomacy Overseas, published in collaboration with the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy Georgetown University in 1990, was the first major treatise on the subject to be written by a practicing diplomat.

Qualifications for the Fellowship

The Public Diplomacy Council of America is seeking a graduate fellow who would combine the following characteristics:
Knowledge of the field of public diplomacy;
Background in website management;
Experience in event planning, digital media, online communications, and project development;
Superior organizational and communication skills and professional networking and outreach capabilities.

Eligibility:

Accepted to any graduate program in AU’s School of Communication or School of International Service;
Enrolled full-time (9 credits or more) or part-time (3 credits or more);
Has US citizenship.

Below are the biographies of our current PDCA and former PDC Graduate Fellows:

Marcela “Marci” Falck-Bados is the current Graduate Fellow for the renamed Hans “Tom” Tuch PDCA Graduate Fellowship. She is a second-year graduate at American University’s School of International Service earning a degree in International and Intercultural Communication with a concentration in Transnational Education and Public Diplomacy. She is interested in understanding the connections between public diplomacy and international education and exchange.

Olivia Chavez is the 2019-2021 Graduate Fellow for the Public Diplomacy Council. As a young professional she is interested in the field of public diplomacy, international education, and the role of cross-cultural communication in foreign policy. Olivia is a graduate student at American University pursuing an M.A in Political Communication as a Coverdell Fellow in the School of Public Affairs.