Broadening the Conversation: CAN announces new writing fellowship program for college and graduate students

CAN Journal exists in part to bring more people into the conversation about art of Northeast Ohio. To advance that cause, Collective Arts Network, the nonprofit publisher of CAN Journal, its blog and weekly e-newsletter, announces Broadening the Conversation—a collaboration with Northeast Ohio university art and art history faculty, including from Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland State University, to provide a platform and mentorship for interested undergraduate and graduate-level students to write about art. 

With support from Wally Lanci, the George Gund Foundation and the Cleveland Foundation, the program offers a publication platform, mentorship, and networking to participating students.

Participants will work with faculty members and CAN editors to choose subjects, including exhibitions for review as well as reported stories, and will receive feedback from professional editors. Writers are encouraged to develop critical voices. After the editorial process they will have their work published in CAN Blog and/or CAN Journal, Northeast Ohio’s art publication of record. In addition to the paid fellowships, other interested students are offered paid opportunities to write at market rate. 

To participate, each institution must have a faculty member who serves as the contact for Collective Arts Network.

At the request of the faculty member from each institution, CAN staff will speak with students about the role of writing about art, the purposes of different types of writing on art, and the Broadening the Conversation program.

The program offers two levels of participation: Freelance, and the CAN Journal Fellowship for Young Writers.

FREELANCE:

All students are invited to work with their university’s representative instructor or professor to submit exhibition reviews for feedback and publication.  Exhibitions for review will be selected collaboratively, with agreement by both the writer and CAN staff.  Any current exhibition in Northeast Ohio is eligible for review. For each review published on CAN Blog, writers will be paid $100.

THE CAN JOURNAL FELLOWSHIP FOR YOUNG WRITERS

Through Broadening the Conversation, CAN offers two fellowship opportunities each semester, in Fall and Spring. Students are invited to apply for the fellowship by emailing a letter of intent and writing sample. The fellowship pays $1000 with the expectation that the recipient will write two reviews for the blog and a feature story to appear in an upcoming print edition of CAN Journal.

Through an application process including writing samples and a statement of interest, CAN will select two writers each semester, to work with the mentors, choose and develop stories, and receive editorial feedback from CAN.

The writing fellows will be involved in all of CAN’s in-person networking and other events.

Applicants who do not receive fellowships are invited to take the opportunity to contribute on a piecemeal, freelance basis as described above.

Requirements: The fellowship pays $1000. It requires writing two reviews of current exhibitions for CAN Blog, and one review or expository feature for the printed CAN Journal. It also requires attending two CAN Journal launch events.

To Apply for the CAN Journal Fellowship for Young Writers:

Discuss it with your professor.

Submit: A) a letter of intent that tells about yourself and your interest in the fellowship, including how it relates to your studies and future plans; and B) at least one and a maximum of five writing samples, ideally (but not necessarily) including an exhibition review. An example of an artist profile (such as would introduce the artist to a reading audience) would also represent the writer well.

DEADLINES:

Freelance:
Ongoing, on a rolling basis. Reviews are to be published while the exhibition is still on view.

Fall 2025 Fellowships:
Apply by midnight Friday, September 26.

Notifications by Friday, October 3

Fellowship period: October 3, 2025 – January 30 2026

Spring 2026 fellowships:
Apply by midnight Friday, January 9, 2026

Notifications by Friday, January 16, 2026

Fellowship period: January 23 – May 22, 2026

Contact Michael@CANjournal.org