Grants or Gifts Relating to Women in Higher Education

Here is this week’s news of grants and gifts that may be of particular interest to women in higher education.

Bennett College, a liberal arts educational institution for women in Greensboro, North Carolina, received a grant from the United Negro College Fund as part of the organization’s Career Pathways initiative supported by the Lilly Foundation. The grant will fund the creation of a corporate advisory group for all majors that will aim to prepare students for employment following graduation.

Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania received a three-year, $330,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health for research on whether stress experienced by women when they are pregnant leads to higher stress hormone levels, susceptibility to disease and premature aging of their children.

Wellesley College, the high-rated liberal arts educational institution for women in Massachusetts, received a donation from alumna Wendy Judge Paulson to launch a five-year program that aims to inspire and prepare students to make a positive ecological difference in the world. Paulson is chair emerita of the worldwide conservation organization, Rare. By using the beauty, diversity, and history of the landscape more intentionally to connect students to campus flora and fauna and to the natural rhythms of life outdoors, and by managing key ecosystems for research and other academic purposes, the initiative aims to make the campus an increasingly effective “living laboratory” and to empower students to take their ecological foundations into the world when they leave Wellesley. “By training women leaders inspired by the beauty and biodiversity of this campus, and educated about the importance of healthy ecosystems, including those achieved through innovative restoration ecology projects, this Initiative will place Wellesley in the forefront of institutions driving positive change for the planet,” said Andrew Shennan, provost and dean of the College.