Coastal Resilience Summer Research Fellow

Colby Coastal Resilience Summer Research Fellows - 2026

We are pleased to announce two Coastal Resilience Summer Research Fellowships for 2026.  Coastal Resilience Fellows will work a minimum of 350 hours over the summer at a level III wage.  Students will live on campus with regular trips to Port Clyde while conducting independent research focused on the planning and design processes for the construction of a new building for the Center for Resilience and Economic Impact on the waterfront in Port Clyde, Maine. The Fellows will have the opportunity to engage with Colby's planning team and faculty as well as the project architects. The other half of the job supports program development of the Center for Resilience and Economic Impact under the guidance of the Director of the Center for Resilience and Economic Impact.   

Fellows must identify a research area centered on development and design of the new Center for Resilience and Economic Impact, and may include areas such as sustainable design, landscape architecture, and understanding the context of the building in Maine's working waterfront.  Research must centrally incorporate elements of resilience, sustainability, or design of community-focused spaces.  For example, research may focus on sustainable design, sustainable infrastructure, landscape architecture, energy systems, defining and measuring working waterfront, photography, architecture, creative writing, historical preservation, or history. Research may also take advantage of proximity to Colby's Island campus to explore lessons learned about sustainable infrastructure on Allen and Benner Islands and collaboration with Colby's Summer Island Fellows.

Support of coastal resilience programming will require working with the inaugural Director for the Center for Resilience and Economic Impact.   Support tasks may include assisting in organizing and coordination of a summer seminar series in Port Clyde or other community events as needed.   Summer Fellows must be comfortable working on and near the water. Summer Fellows must have a driver's license, have a clean driving record, and the ability to become Colby driver-certified for regular trips between Waterville and Port Clyde.

Student Research Fellows will live on campus, working from campus as appropriate with regular trips to Port Clyde and the Island Campus as needed.

Applicants should submit here a cover letter, resume and a one page description of their proposed research project.  The cover letter should address the applicant’s ability to do independent research work with low (or remote) supervision and the ability to work collaboratively in small groups and/or in remote locations.  Review of applications will begin on 2/28/26.      

Students interested in learning more about this opportunity are encouraged to contact Denise Bruesewitz, provost.bruesewitz@colby.edu or Whitney King, islandcampus@colby.edu, in advance of the application deadline.  Current students will have priority in the hiring process, although graduating seniors with particularly strong research proposals will be considered.