Religion, Journalism & International Affairs

The Luce/ACLS Program in Religion, Journalism & International Affairs was launched in 2015 to foster new connections between scholars and journalists covering international affairs. Administered by the American Council of Learned Societies on behalf of the Luce Foundation, the program awarded more than $3.2 million in support of humanities and social science scholars and their collaborations with journalists and media practitioners. The fellowship supported production of significant scholarly work as well as specific efforts to engage journalistic and media audiences and awarded its final round of fellowships in March 2021.

Image: American correspondent Micah Danney as he interviews Israelis during a parade in Jerusalem, which was one of the major events of the week-long Feast of Tabernacles festival, also known as Sukkot. Photo by Heidi Levine for The GroundTruth Project.

The Henry Luce III Fellows in Theology Program

Established in 1993, the program of the Henry Luce III Fellows in Theology supported the research of junior and senior scholars whose projects offered significant and innovative contributions to theological studies. The program sought to foster excellence in theological scholarship, and to strengthen the links among theological research, churches, and wider publics.

The program was administered by the Association of Theological Schools, the accrediting and program agency for graduate theological education in the United States and Canada. From the program’s inception until its conclusion in 2018, 160 faculty members in ATS schools were named Luce Fellows.

The Henry R. Luce Professorship Program

The Henry R. Luce Professorship Program was established in 1968 to encourage academic experimentation and creativity. It was inspired by one of Mr. Luce’s favorite concepts, which he called “the unity of truth,” and designed to support the integration of knowledge through innovative, interdisciplinary teaching and learning.

The Luce chairs, which were funded for six to nine years, focused on the humanities and social sciences, and often drew upon insights from scientific discoveries. Luce Professors included distinguished academics as well as public intellectuals and practitioners from outside the academy. Between its inception in 1968 and its conclusion in 2003, the program supported 71 professorships at 56 institutions.