The APSA Minority Fellows Program, established in 1969, aims to increase diversity in the discipline of political science. The Spring MFP supports students from underrepresented backgrounds who are currently enrolled in the first or second year of a political science PhD program. Awards will range between $500 and $1500, depending on availability funds.
Samantha Chapa is a second-year PhD student in the department of Political Science at the University of Houston. She is interested in the intersection between human rights and immigration policy and is currently studying how nationalist waves across the globe affect immigrants’ rights, political participation, and policy. She is also examining biases and discrepancies in immigration court outcomes across the United States. While at UH, Samantha has lectured undergraduate students on U.S. immigration policy and served as a TA for human rights courses. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Samantha worked as a Department of Justice (DOJ) Accredited Representative at BakerRipley, where she legally represented vulnerable immigrant groups in both affirmative and court proceedings. Her direct experiences with refugees, asylees, and detained immigrants informs her research, and she hopes to continue working with such communities by engaging in research that examines the political participation, representation, and rights of immigrants. Samantha obtained a B.A. in English and History from Rice University in 2016.