Drs. Dale & Vivian Jackson Endowed Dissertation Completion Award

The Jackson's family helps EdD students excel in their dissertation

Thanks to the generous donation from the Jackson family, doctoral students can receive a scholarship to help complete their dissertation within one year of graduation and contribute to the community through their scholarly research.

Division of Graduate Studies

Details & Eligiblity

Details

  1. This award will be given and paid as scholarship to eligible Ed.D. students so they can complete their dissertations.
  2. The award will be $1,000 paid towards the student's Ubill.
  3. Awards can be paid on the Fall, Spring, or Summer semesters.
  4. Graduate Studies will only support one student yearly.
  5. To apply, students need to fill out the Interest Form. Upon submission, Graduate Studies will review eligibility and then connect the applicant with the right department faculty or advisor to issue the letter of support.
    1. The "Interest From must contain the basic information about the student, GPA, provide dissertation committee details, and attach the dissertation proposal and their completed literature review.
    2. The Letter of Support from the faculty member must address the following elements:
      1. Student's name and program information.
      2. The significance of the dissertation research as it is situated in the respective discipline.
      3. The feasibility of completing it in the stated time frame with the requested resources.
      4. The applicant's qualifications for carrying out the project.

Eligiblity

  1.  Must be an EdD Doctoral student completing their dissertation
  2. Must be within one year of graduation
  3. Able to demonstrate at the time of application the need for financial assistance
  4. Meet the following criteria:
    1. Be in good academic standing, GPA equal or above 3.0.
    2. Have completed all courses and program requirements (except dissertation) all research tools and all qualifying comprehensive examinations.
    3. Have an established dissertation Committee, an approved dissertation proposal, and a completed review of the literature.
    4. Be enrolled at UNI during the semester of which the application is made, for a minimum of one semester credit hours.
    5. Be the individual responsible for the research described in the dissertation as the student investigator, for research compliance.
  5. Required to have a Letter of Support from an advisor or other faculty member within their intensive study area who is familiar with their dissertation. This letter must include the following:
    1. The significance of the dissertation research as it is situated in the respective discipline.
    2. The feasibility of completing it in the stated time frame with the requested resources.
    3. The applicant's qualifications for carrying out the project.
Apply for the Dale & Vivian Jackson award

Meet the Donors

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Dale R. Jackson, EdD.

Dr. Dale R. Jackson is a native of Quincy, Illinois where he became a teacher and principal of Jackson Elementary School early in his career. He is a graduate of Western Illinois University, earning a bachelor’s, master’s, and specialist’s degrees. Further studies were done at Northern Illinois University (Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership), Illinois State University (Post Doctoral Fellowship in Academic Administration), and Harvard University (Post Doctoral Institute In Higher Education Management).  In addition to his experience in K-12 education, he held a variety of positions in higher education at five universities over 30 years. Before assuming Emeritus status upon retirement from the University of Northern Iowa, Dr. Jackson held administrative positions at Illinois State University (Assistant to the Provost and Professor of Educational Administration), at Chicago State University (Vice President for Student Affairs and Professor of Curriculum and Instruction), and at the University of Northern Iowa (Professor and Head, Department of Educational Administration and Counseling).

‌Vivian R. Jackson, PhD.

Dr. Vivian R. Jackson, a graduate of Wells High School (Chicago, Illinois) received a bachelor's Degree in History from Rosary College (now Dominican University) in River Forest, Illinois.  For several years she taught and worked as an administrative assistant and college counselor in the Chicago Public Schools at the high school level. While working on a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration at DePaul University, she transitioned to a position in higher education at Barat College (Lake Forest, Illinois) as Assistant Director of the Upward Bound Program. Working in a college preparatory program led her to pursue and earn a PhD. in Counseling from Northwestern University.  Her desire to work in higher education was enhanced when she was selected to receive Postdoctoral training at the Harvard University Institute in Higher Education Management. Dr. Jackson has held a variety of positions at four universities over 30 years Principal positions were:  Associate Director of the CHANCE program (Northern Illinois University), Director of Counseling (Illinois State University Laboratory School), Director of Counseling (Illinois State University), and Associate Professor and Associate Dean of the Graduate College (University of Northern Iowa). She received Emeritus status upon retirement from the University of Northern Iowa.

Have questions about the award?

Contact gradcollege@uni.edu for any questions, requests, or if you'd like to thank the Jackson family.