The Idea Behind the Fellowship

The Karel Fellowship honors and advances the legacy of Frank Karel, who established, led and nurtured the field of strategic communications in philanthropy during his 30 years as chief communications officer for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the and Rockefeller Foundation.

Among Karel’s strong beliefs was that the public would best be served if the next generation of advocates was reflective of America’s ever-growing diverse communities. Towards that end, each summer, the Fellowship matches first-generation and/or minority students with leading nonprofits in the D.C. area, where they work on social justice issues under the guidance of a communication mentor.