The APSA Diversity Fellows Program (DFP) is a fellowship competition for individuals from underrepresented backgrounds applying to or in the early stages of doctoral programs in political science. The DFP was established in 1969 (originally as the Black Graduate Fellowship) to increase the number of minority scholars in the discipline. Since its inception, the APSA DFP has designated more than 600 fellows and contributed to the successful completion of doctoral political science programs for over 100 individuals.
Rosemarie Lerma is a PhD student in political science at Indiana University. Her research interest is Latino voting behavior, specifically in understanding how Latino voters receive and process information, their changing geographic distribution, and the consequences for congressional races in the 21st century. Rosemarie holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and Chicana/o studies from the University of California, Los Angeles. She also holds a master’s degree in political science from California State University, Northridge.