Javits fellow pursuing Ph.D. at KU uses summer to work 2 jobs, volunteer

LAWRENCE -- In May 2000, when Brian Tongier graduated from the University of Kansas, he had not only a bachelor's degree in sociology but also a national Javits fellowship for four years of graduate study and acceptance to the graduate program at the University of California, Los Angeles.

He left his stocker job at Checkers grocery store, completed his seventh stint volunteering with Habitat for Humanity and began to work on a master's degree at UCLA.

Last fall, Tongier returned to KU with a master's degree to pursue a doctorate in sociology and is the first Javits fellow in KU's Graduate School in the past six years. Javits fellowships were established by Congress in 1985 and were renamed in honor of the late Sen. Jacob Javits in 1986. About 100 scholarships are awarded annually for graduate study in selected fields of the arts, humanities and social sciences.

This summer Tongier is working two jobs: as a research assistant at KU and as a stocker at Checkers. As a Javits fellow, he is prohibited from working more than 10 hours during the school year. The federally funded Javits fellowships provide stipends of up to $15,000 a year for living expenses. The amount each fellow receives is based on need. The program also provides $10,000 annually to the schools in which Javits fellows are enrolled to cover graduate school tuition and fees.

Tongier is working as a research assistant with Mary Zimmerman, KU professor of sociology, for a project examining health-care spending by governments in nine states including Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Zimmerman's project is funded by the Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization (HCFO) Initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Zimmerman says that it was a stroke of fortune for her that Tongier was available to work and had previous experience researching sociological impacts of public policies. As an honors student at KU with an undergraduate research award, Tongier examined how state governments define success of welfare reform.

His KU research adviser, Robert Antonio, KU professor of sociology, says that Tongier is considering a comparative study of far-right movements in France, Italy and Germany. Tongier has been researching neo-confederate movements in the United States -- such as groups that view the Civil War as a conflict about states' rights rather than about slavery.

Antonio, who also was Tongier's undergraduate research adviser, says, "Brian has an exceptional capacity for independent research, which is unusual at this stage -- three years out of undergraduate school. He is way ahead of the game in terms of professional research."

Antonio describes Tongier as extremely productive and energetic. "Last year he gave three professional presentations and was enrolled in five graduate courses."

Tongier is learning languages to prepare for his dissertation research. This past year, he concentrated on Italian. French and German are still to come.

Tongier says he is at the stage of clarifying his views before defining the scope of his research. He will take his comprehensive exams during the coming academic year. He also continues to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity in Lawrence.

He selected KU for his Ph.D. work for many reasons, including KU's sociology department, the opportunity to do interdisciplinary work and Lawrence's size.

He is the son of Randy and Jane Tongier of Lawrence and is a graduate of Lawrence High School.