WASHINGTON – Howard University is pleased to announce a $200,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation’s Clare Boothe Luce Program to support two three-year scholarships for undergraduate women participating in the Karsh STEM Scholars Program who are majoring in engineering. In addition to covering tuition and fees, the scholarship also covers the cost of room and board as well as supplies over the three-year period.  

“We are grateful to the Henry Luce Foundation and the Clare Boothe Luce program for this generous contribution to support the pipeline of women pursuing professional degrees and careers in STEM,” said David Bennett, Howard University’s vice president of Development and Alumni Relations. “Howard University is committed to increasing the racial, ethnic, income, and gender diversity of America’s STEM workforce and we are proud to partner with the foundation to achieve that goal.” 

Clare Boothe Luce was a successful playwright, journalist, U.S. Ambassador to Italy, and the first woman elected to Congress from Connecticut. The widow of Henry Luce, she created the program at the Henry Luce Foundation “to encourage women to enter, study, graduate, and teach” in science, mathematics, and engineering. 

According to the Henry Luce Foundation website:

“The Clare Boothe Luce Program awarded its first grants in 1989, and is dedicated to increasing the participation of women in the sciences, mathematics and engineering at every level of higher education. It also serves as a catalyst for colleges and universities to be proactive in their own efforts toward this goal.”

To date, the Clare Boothe Luce Program has awarded over $200 million to over 200 colleges and universities in the U.S. and has supported over 2,500 women.  

“Because of this generous gift of support for the Karsh STEM Scholars Program, we will be further equipped to realize our goal of cultivating a workforce pipeline of talented students from underrepresented communities,” said Ronald Smith, Karsh STEM Scholars Program director. “We are especially excited to receive this award that focuses specifically on creating the next generation of women leaders in the global STEM community.” 

To learn more about the Karsh STEM Scholars Program, visit https://karshstemscholars.howard.edu/. 

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About Howard University 

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced one Schwarzman Scholar, three Marshall Scholars, four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, 25 Pickering Fellows and more than 70 Fulbright Scholars. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, visit www.howard.edu. 

Media Contact: Misha Cornelius, misha.cornelius@howard.edu