Vin Moscardelli became Director of the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships (ONSF) in the fall of 2016.  Vin is a political scientist (Ph.D. Emory University) whose research and teaching interests include the U.S. Congress, elections, and political leadership.  A former American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow, his most recently published research, supported by a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, explores the politics of congressional primaries. Prior to joining ONSF, Vin held faculty appointments at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and the University of Connecticut.  He has 25 years of experience in the classroom and on the “front lines” of enrichment programs and advising, having served as a departmental honors coordinator, departmental internship coordinator, and faculty advisor to student organizations.  While at UMass, he received national recognition for his work with political science honors students, being named “Best Chapter Advisor” by Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society.

I joined Enrichment Programs as an academic advisor for the Individualized Major program in 2013 and became the Assistant Director of ONSF in 2023. My educational background is interdisciplinary; I studied mechanical engineering as an undergraduate at Lehigh University and then history as a doctoral student at UConn. My graduate work focused on the history of science in Europe from the Scientific Revolution through the Darwinian Revolution. As a graduate student, and then as an adjunct professor, I taught History of Science and European history at UConn and several other colleges in Connecticut. My inspiration for joining ONSF stems from the year I spent doing archival research in Italy, which was graciously funded by the Fulbright US Student Program. My current role allows me to provide support for students who would like to embark on similar life changing experiences, either through the Fulbright or other scholarships (see below for the whole list). When I am not helping students with applications I enjoy reading and playing chess.