Director: David J. Weber

Established in fall 1996, SMU's Clements Center for Southwest Studies promotes  research, publishing, teaching, and public programming in a variety of fields of inquiry related to the American Southwest.

Research Fellows:  The Clements Center annually supports Research Fellows.  These residential fellowships are for senior or junior scholars from any field of the humanities or social sciences who are doing research on Southwestern America of the U.S. - Mexico borderlands.  The fellowships are designed to provide time for the scholars to bring book-length manuscripts to completion. 

Ph.D. Program: The William P. Clements, Jr. Department of History at Southern Methodist University, in conjunction with the Clements Center for Southwest Studies, offers an innovative Ph.D. program.  The program is built around three fields: a major field in American history, a second in the history of the Southwest and Mexico, and a third in global and comparative history.  Through grants and special research opportunities, the Clements Center offers multiple levels of support for the Ph.D. students including a new Dissertation Fellowship which includes a living allowance and travel/research fund.

Research Grants:  The Clements Center awards research grants to SMU graduate students to travel and conduct work that focuses on Southwest topics, including U.S. - Mexico borderlands, at sites beyond SMU.  Interdisciplinary in nature, these grants are open to studies in the humanities and social studies.  Through the Clements Center-DeGolyer Library Research Grants, the Clements Center offers research grants to applicants who live outside the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area to encourage a broader and more intensive use of the special collections at DeGolyer Library.

Books:  The Clements Center subsidizes the publication of, or publishes in its own right, books on Southwestern America, including The Library of Texas series.  

Book Prize:  The Clements Center awards the annual William P. Clements Prize for the Best Non-Fiction Book on Southwestern America.

Public Events

Current and Upcoming Events:  The Clements Center hosts many different types of events during the year including lectures, lecture series, seminars, and symposiums.

Symposiums:  The Clements Center presents public programming, including symposia.

Monthly Brown Bag Series:  During the semester the Clements Center organizes monthly programs called the Brown Bag Lunch Speaker Series for SMU faculty, staff, graduate students, and members of the community who are interested in topics related to the Southwest.  Presentations are wide-ranging and interdisciplinary, often reporting on current research, recent publications, or new exhibitions.

Center Operations

The Clements Center forms part of the Consortium for Southwest Studies, which links similar centers throughout the region.

Community Fellows of the Clements Center for Southwest Studies

Benefactors, Advisors, and Staff of the Center

Contact Information

The William P. Clements Center for Southwest Studies
Southern Methodist University
3225 University Avenue, Room 356
Box 750176, Dallas, TX 75275-0176
(214) 768-3684
fax (214) 768-4129
Email us at swcenter@smu.edu

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