Description
The John Garvey Scholarship Fund allows young professionals to participate in global knowledge exchange through attendance at a local government management event in a country other than their home country. The ICMA Global Engagement Committee offers two scholarships of up to $3,500 from the John Garvey Fund to applicants who meet the requirements. One scholarship is designated for a U.S. citizen and the other for a non-U.S. citizen. If no applications are received from one or the other of these categories of potential applicants, two scholarships may be awarded within the same category.
The 2025 application cycle for the John Garvey Scholarship is open from April 14 through June 2. Gather your application materials and apply now! Individuals with questions can contact Sophie Weyn at sweyn@icma.org.
Guidance to Applicants
The review committee looks for the following items in a completed application:
- Relevance of proposed event attendance to personal professional goals.
- Relevance of proposed event attendance to home community needs.
- Appropriate explanation of use of funds, including explanation of source of additional funds if necessary.
- Identification of a specific local government event outside of the applicant's home country regardless of whether dates are published.
- Letter of support from applicant's employer detailing how the trip will benefit the applicant and their employer (see Requirements below for more information).
- Plan for sharing their experience with the greater ICMA membership.
Requirements
- Applicant must be an active member of ICMA and age 40 or under at the time of application. Learn more about becoming a member of ICMA.
- Applicant cannot be a member of the ICMA Global Engagement Committee at the time of application.
- The scholarship is limited to direct expenses associated with attendance at an international conference or event.
- The applicant, if selected, is responsible for any expenses above the $3,500 amount.
- These funds may not be used to repay student loans or to fund solely cultural experiences.
- An endorsement letter from the applicant’s employer must be submitted explaining what assistance the local government will provide to the applicant. The letter should include:
- A statement of support for attending the fellowship/time away from office.
- A statement about how the experience will benefit the applicant's organization/community.
- A brief description about the applicant's current role and their recent successes.
Individuals with questions can contact Sophie Weyn, assistant program manager, global engagement, at sweyn@icma.org.
Eligible International Local Government Events
ICMA maintains contact with local government organizations around the world. If you are interested in attending the conference of one of these organizations, contact Sophie Weyn at sweyn@icma.org for more information.
Many organizations do not announce their conferences until 1-2 months prior to the conference date. While we make every effort to list the events on the ICMA events calendar and on this page, we do not know every upcoming event. If there is another local government-related event you would like to attend, list this event in your application. If you need help selecting an event, contact ICMA for assistance.
Selection Process
Applicants will be evaluated by a selection committee led by the vice chair of the ICMA Global Engagement Committee.
About the John Garvey Scholarship Fund
The John Garvey Fund was established in 1995 following the recommendation of the ICMA Global Engagement Committee (then called the International Committee) to create a scholarship to assist ICMA members in gaining an international management perspective. The scholarship was named for John Garvey, who served as coordinator of the International Management Exchange Program for many years. A stated desire of the committee is to increase the number of women, minorities, and young professionals participating in international activities.
