The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) has announced the recipients of the 2026 Luce/ACLS Early Career Fellowships and Travel Grants in China Studies. The selected projects cover a wide range of historical periods and regions, offering innovative perspectives on longstanding historical issues as well as lesser-explored aspects of modern China.

These 24 fellowships and grants are awarded through the Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies, funded by a $3 million commitment from the Henry Luce Foundation that extends through 2028. The program is designed to strengthen scholarship on China by encouraging diverse viewpoints and supporting researchers from varied academic institutions and disciplines.

JM Chris Chang, ACLS Program Officer in China Studies, highlighted the creativity and ambition of this year’s awardees, noting that many are developing new archives, tracing the movement of commodities across regions, and using religious sites to better understand medieval societies. Chang emphasized that continued support for early-career humanities scholars is vital for fostering informed and meaningful scholarship on China in today’s changing world.

Yuting Li, Program Director for Asia at the Luce Foundation, stressed the importance of supporting young scholars to ensure the continued growth of the field. Li remarked that the work of this year’s fellows and grantees demonstrates both the adaptability of China studies and the determination of emerging researchers to pursue innovative scholarship despite shifting global and academic conditions.

As part of the 2026 program, recipients of the Luce/ACLS Travel Grants will also join a professional development workshop series focused on public engagement. Led by Lindsay Krasnoff, Clinical Assistant Professor at New York University, the workshops will help participants strengthen skills in public communication and media writing, enabling them to share informed perspectives with wider audiences.

Beyond these fellowships and grants, the Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies continues to promote growth in the discipline through initiatives such as the Collaborative Grant program, scheduled for announcement later this year, and the China Studies Digital Mapping Project, which expands access to free and open research resources for scholars.

Founded one hundred years ago, the American Council of Learned Societies is a nonprofit federation representing 86 scholarly associations. As a major advocate for humanities and social science research in the United States, ACLS promotes the idea that knowledge should serve the public good. Through partnerships with organizations, institutions, and scholars, ACLS works to broaden access to scholarship and strengthen the systems that support academic research.

The Henry Luce Foundation, established in 1936 by Time, Inc. co-founder and editor-in-chief Henry R. Luce, aims to advance understanding and knowledge in support of a more just and democratic society. The foundation pursues this mission by supporting intellectual communities, encouraging dialogue across differences, enriching public discussion, elevating diverse perspectives, and investing in future leaders.

This week, I had the honor of speaking at JFF Horizons about the importance of a skills-first approach to workforce development. My team and I at IBM work on this every day because we are committed to investing in the future of work, with a focus on underrepresented communities. It was inspiring to hear from many other thought leaders championing this movement, as well as some IBM partners who are assisting us in driving progress in developing the ecosystem required to advance a skills-first approach.

When we look at the state of hiring today, we know that many talented individuals have the knowledge, skills, and abilities that companies seek, but the system we have does not work well for either applicants or employers. We require a modernized system in which learners' credentials are portable, verifiable, and use common frameworks, thereby increasing their value and accessibility to employers and academic institutions.

This has been a source of concern for some time, but it is gaining prominence as companies struggle to hire. According to surveys, talent shortages in the United States have reached a 10-year high, and this shortage is even worse among tech workers, with over 1.2 million U.S. job vacancies in software-related professions.

To address this quandary, businesses must look beyond the old paradigm of skills vs. degrees and develop an integrated system of training, credentials, and degrees that meets the needs of both individuals and employers. One that recognises that people's school-to-work journey is not a straight line, nor does it end with a degree programme, but rather includes secondary and post-secondary education, professional training, and skills gained through work with or without a degree.

Many companies talk about hiring candidates without degrees but don't have a new strategy in place to get them into gateway jobs. As a training provider and credential issuer, IBM is investing in the future of work through a multifaceted approach that includes: • applying our technology to improve the structures and systems that underpin the new ecosystem; • pioneering practises in our hiring and education programmes; and • advocating for policies that will benefit other employers and training providers.

We can do more, and we should all work together to implement the following measures to create the ecosystem we require:

I also had the pleasure of meeting with the Community College Workforce Coalition this week to discuss the systemic issues and structural pain points that we all face. Community colleges have always played an important multifaceted role in our communities, providing training and developing market-responsive degree and non-degree pathways. Individual credentials can be earned along the way and help students make progress toward their goals, whether they attend a community college to pursue a degree or to upskill for a job.

IBM is committed to expanding skill training and technology credentials, as well as providing free education to members of underrepresented communities. I encourage everyone in the private, public, and non-profit sectors to consider this critical work. We can address the talent shortage, close the skills gap, and give those who have traditionally been excluded access to careers in technology. Let us form the collaborations required to validate credentials and close the skills gap.

To learn more about what IBM is doing for education and workforce development, click here.