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.

Lehman College of the City University of New York announced a four-year, $200,000 grant from the Sara Little Turnbull Foundation for programs to increase the number of women and members of underrepresented groups in the field of design. The grant will expand financial and career support for students, increase existing design course offerings and establish new lecturer positions within the department. Sara Little Turnbull (1917–2015) was one of America’s first woman industrial designers.

The Clare Boothe Luce Program of the Henry Luce Foundation has awarded Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, a $495,341 grant to support the hiring of a Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professor of Mathematics. “The Clare Boothe Luce Professorship at Carleton will honor the legacy of Ambassador Luce by nurturing a talented female mathematician who will be a successful researcher, a brilliant teacher, and a leader committed to increasing the representation of women in math nationally,” Dean of the College Beverly Nagel said. “Carleton faculty will provide mentoring that will enable the assistant professor to achieve her full potential in teaching, research and leadership, both on campus and in national STEM communities.”

Jennifer Blaney, an assistant professor of higher education at Idaho State University received a grant from the Spencer Foundation to examine equity in undergraduate computing programs. Dr. Blaney’s research will focus on gender equity in the pathways and success of “upward transfer” students, those who have transferred from a community college to a four-year university. Dr. Blaney is a graduate of Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, where she majored in music. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in higher education from the University of California, Los Angeles.

The University of Montana was awarded a grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation to support female-centered programming for students and local individuals interested in learning more about women’s entrepreneurship. The grant will support the Pursue Your Passions program, an online course designed to meet the needs of working women. This new course is designed for busy women,” said Morgan Slemberger, program director of Pursue Your Passions. “The self-paced, online delivery can meet the needs of women who have a less flexible schedule due to families, busy careers and other factors. We want to make it easier since availability can be a barrier to starting something new.”