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The Beyster Professorship, Fellowship, and Related Fellows Programs are supported by a major gift from J. Robert Beyster, Mary Ann Beyster, the Foundation for Enterprise Development, and the Employee Ownership Foundation.  Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations established this leading fellowship and professorship program in employee ownership and shared capitalism.

Related fellowships have been funded through the generosity of:

  • Accurate Equity
  • American Association of Stock Plan Administrators
  • Blue Wolf Capital Partners
  • Exxon Mobil Corporation
  • Fidelity Investments
  • Rosen Ownership Opportunity Fund of the National Center for Employee Ownership
  • Adam Blumenthal
  • Raymond B. Carey
  • Joseph Cabral
  • Caroline P. Huber
  • Linda Borden McKean
  • John Menke
  • Robert W. Smiley, Jr.

Fellows

View a directory of all Institute Fellows since 2008

J. Robert Beyster Professorship

The Beyster Professorship is SMLR’s first endowed professorship. An endowed professorship is one of the highest honors a university can bestow and is reserved for an eminent scholar whose work and research significantly advances the discipline. The Beysters’ generosity is recognition of the unparalleled level of expertise that the School of Management and Labor Relations has in the area of employee ownership, profit-sharing, and broad-based stock options.

 The foundation’s relationship with the professors at the School of Management and Labor Relations is more than 25 years old, and we continue to be impressed by the caliber of research and teaching in the field of employee ownership and shared capitalism. Success for our next generation of leaders will largely depend on their ability to attract and guide people—human capital. Through this chair, we hope to help Rutgers shape and guide future leaders in this area of scholarship.

– Mary Ann Beyster
President, Foundation for Enterprise Development

About the Program 

The process for selecting the first J. Robert Beyster Professor, who will be appointed for a renewable five-year term, began in the fall of 2010. Developing and teaching undergraduate- and graduate-level elective courses focused on employee ownership and related issues, and mentoring Beyster fellows at Rutgers and other academic institutions, will be among the named professor’s responsibilities.

History of the J. Robert Beyster Fellowships

SMLR’s annual fellowship program was established with a major gift from J. Robert Beyster and Mary Ann Beyster of La Jolla, California, with a grant from the Foundation for Enterprise Development.

The Beyster Fellowships Program

The fellowships program is coordinated by two Beyster faculty fellows at Rutgers, professors Joseph Blasi and Douglas Kruse.

The Beyster fellowships are awarded to outstanding Ph.D. candidates or postdoctoral scholars in the areas of economics, history, management, business and labor relations, law, philosophy, psychology, political science, public policy, and sociology studying employee ownership and related ideas such as profit sharing and broad-based stock options in the corporation and society in the United States. The fellowships permit the students to associate with several scholars engaged in this area of research at Rutgers and receive mentoring and support.

Beyster Postdoctoral Fellowship

This fellowship will support pre-tenure scholars and recent Ph.D. graduates.The stipend is $25,000 for one year and can be used for research, travel, and living expenses. The fellow can be a resident at Rutgers University or at their home institution. The period and length of residency varies. 

Beyster Graduate Fellowship

This fellowship supports a Ph.D. student who is initiating or completing a thesis. The fellowship amount is $25,000 per year. The funds can be used to support full-time study at Rutgers University or research and travel expenses for graduate students at other universities. Students who wish to combine the fellowship with graduate study at Rutgers must also be accepted into the School of Management and Labor Relations doctoral program.

Beyster Visiting Graduate Fellowship

This fellowship supports a Ph.D. student who is completing a thesis. The stipend is $25,000 for one year and can be used for research, travel, and living expenses. The fellowship requires residency at Rutgers University. The period and length of residency at Rutgers University varies.

J. Robert Beyster Visiting Professor

This postdoctoral fellowship of $25,000 supports a scholar who holds an academic appointment at another university and visits Rutgers in order to collaborate with researchers at the university. 

How To Apply

Applicants must submit the following information in writing by by the deadline for applications for the fellowships:

  1. A statement of no more than 1,500 words describing their proposed research project including its current status and broader significance;
  2. A curriculum vitae; 
  3. Three letters of reference (in sealed envelopes or submitted separately by letter writers) by email to beysterfellowships@smlr.rutgers.edu
  4. A preliminary budget if the request is for research expenses. 

Address: 
Search Committee, Beyster Fellowships
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
School of Management and Labor Relations
Janice H. Levin Building, Room 216
94 Rockafeller Road
Piscataway, NJ  08854

Open to postdoctoral scholars or Ph.D. candidates in a relevant  social science, humanities, business, or public policy discipline. A number of fellowships will be offered this year. Please submit your application for a fellowship by March 1, 2025 and include a detailed plan to carry out your research within the next academic year. Final decisions will be made on May 1, 2025. The fellowships will be awarded for the July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026 academic year​.

For more information or questions, please email beysterfellowships@smlr.rutgers.edu.

 

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Joseph Blasi
Executive Director
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Doug Kruse
Associate Director
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Bill Castellano
Associate Director
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Adria Scharf
Associate Director
Director of Education and Collaborations
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Christopher Michael
Senior Director
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