Support the Annual Conference Fund

The mission of NACOLE's Annual Conference Scholarship Fund is to offer financial support to individuals to attend the Annual NACOLE Conference, expanding the reach of civilian oversight and promoting participation by individuals from a broad spectrum of social, economic, racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. The Scholarship Fund supports and strengthens the work of civilian oversight practitioners and communities by providing access to a broad range of oversight information, best practices and professional networks.

The Annual Conference Scholarship Fund is made possible by generous donations from Sivil, Inc., and other contributions from individuals and organizations across the country, and is intended to help reduce out-of-pocket expenses (i.e., registration, travel, lodging, meals) to attend the Annual NACOLE Conference.

To apply for a scholarship: CLICK HERE 

Submission Deadline: September 1, 2026, 11:59 pm ET

Scholarship Descriptions, Eligibility, and Applications

The Founders’ and Presidents' Scholarship Award honors NACOLE's founders and past presidents by supporting community members, grassroots organizers, law enforcement professionals, volunteers, academics, students, early-career oversight practitioners, and others seeking to advance civilian oversight. Membership in NACOLE is not required.

The Membership Scholarship Award supports current NACOLE members by providing financial assistance to attend the Annual Conference. Applicants must be current members in good standing or affiliated with an organization holding an active organizational membership. Not a member of NACOLE?  Join today.

The New Agency Scholarship Award supports practitioners working for civilian oversight agencies established within the last five years, by providing opportunities to learn best practices, build professional networks, and strengthen emerging oversight programs.

The Local Community Scholarship Award supports community members, volunteers, advocacy organizations, and local law enforcement representatives located in the Louisville metropolitan area. This scholarship primarily supports conference registration and is funded through donations designated for local participation.

Additional Information

Applications will be evaluated based upon:

• Demonstrated commitment to civilian oversight and accountability
• Potential impact of conference participation on the applicant's organization or community
• Thoughtfulness and quality of application responses
• Alignment with the selected scholarship category
• Overall distribution of scholarship funding
• Whether or not an applicant has previously received a NACOLE scholarship

Additionally, scholarships may cover all or part of requested conference expenses. Award amounts will vary based on applicant need, available funding, and committee recommendations.  

Recipients are responsible for making their own travel arrangements unless otherwise instructed by NACOLE.

Questions may be directed to: [email protected]

How to Donate

To support this and other NACOLE programs, please consider a donation to our annual fund today. You may submit your scholarship donation online HERE.

Please mail your check to:

NACOLE Annual Fund

P. O. Box 20851

Indianapolis, IN 46220-0851

Deadline

September 1, 2026, 11:59 pm ET

Contact Us

Questions? Contact us at [email protected] or (317) 721-8133.

Scholarship Fund Founding Donors

The launch of the Scholarship Fund, at the 2012 Annual NACOLE Conference in San Diego, California, was very successful due to the generosity of the NACOLE community. The following individuals were Founding Donors to the fund:

Brian Buchner, Jayson Wechter, Robert Barton, Pierce Murphy, Kathryn Olson, Ilana Rosenzweig, Karen Williams, Edward B. Smart, Michael Wilson, Charles Smith, Gillian Lucky, Eduardo Diaz, Joyce Hicks, Cynthia Hernandez, Crista Noel, Paula Tillman, Brian Edy, Sandra Arkin, Brian Corr, Dawn Reynolds, Patrick Hunter, Elizabeth Lerner, Mark P. Smith, Ines Vargas Fraenkel, Michael Quinn, Barbara Attard, Sharon Kidd, Joseph Lipari, Anthony Potenza, Najuma Henderson, Marilyn Hammon, Cameron McEllhiney, Sue Quinn, Scott Ando, Julie Ruhlin, Edward McMahon, Nathan Rubenfeld, Ainsley Cromwell, Philip Young, Simone Levine, and Danell Scarborough.