Diane Dammeyer Fellowship in Photographic Arts and Social Issues 2026/27

The Diane Dammeyer Fellowship in Photographic Arts and Social Issues is administered by Columbia College Chicago in partnership with the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP). Founded in 2015 with Fereshteh Toosi as its first fellow, the fellowship supports socially engaged photographers producing new work in collaboration with a Chicago-based community partner organization.

The fellowship runs from September through June with flexible hours, structured to allow the fellow to maintain other professional commitments while embedded with their community partner. The work culminates in a public exhibition and/or publication at MoCP — the partnership between fellow and community organization is treated as the core of the fellowship rather than a transactional output.

Past fellows have addressed human rights, social, economic, and cultural issues across a wide range of communities: Ervin A. Johnson (2016–17), Anahid Ghorbani (2017–18), Sasha Phyars-Burgess (2018–19), Jonathan Michael Castillo (2019–21), Melissa Ann Pinney (2021–22), Dylan Yarbrough (2022–23), the joint Oscar B. Castillo & Wil Sands fellowship (2023–24), and Alessandro Bo (2024–25).

Eligibility requires either an MFA in photography or related field, or a BA plus five years of post-degree creative practice. Preference is given to Chicago-based projects. Two professional references are required. There is no application fee. Applications go through JotForm; the 2026/27 deadline is June 12, 2026.