Amplifying Opportunity in The Humanities Division
Enhancing student success through philanthropy
The Humanities Division at UC Santa Cruz is dedicated to producing students who are engaged, informed, empathetic, and connected members of our communities. Building on our global reputation as an innovator of interdisciplinary study rooted in questions of social justice, we develop students’ capacities as deliberative, critical thinkers about social and cultural systems and train students who can attest to the relevance of humanistic thinking: not simply for their occupational life, but for navigating their values and place in the world.
With your support, we can make sure ALL of our students have access to programs that address career preparedness and assist in overcoming barriers, with particular emphasis on experiential learning opportunities, including internships, service learning, and undergraduate research. These high-impact practices are proven to amplify student learning, skill building, problem solving, and civic engagement, especially for first-generation and historically under-represented students.
If we want to build a future based on equity, informed by social justice, with communities and citizens who are culturally competent, globally versed, and historically informed, we need your support for the Humanities at UC Santa Cruz.
“I believe in the power of the Humanities to transform lives and society for the better, and that the Humanities must play a central role in the imagining and iteration of the engaged democracy we aspire to be.”
—Jasmine Alinder, Dean of Humanities
Supporting Student Success In The Humanities Division
Humanities Dean’s Excellence Fund—Your gift will recognize student achievements as well as provide emergency direct support to students facing financial obstacles to their academic success.
The Humanities Institute Undergraduate Research Fellowships —Your gift will support undergraduate research projects in the humanities. Up to ten $1000 awards are given each year.
Humanities Graduate Student Fund—Your gift will support two important programs within The Humanities Institute (THI), providing vital graduate student experiences and financial support. The Graduate Student Success Program supports first- and second-year graduate students who have been historically underrepresented in higher education. Support is provided through fellowships, workshops, mentorship opportunities, and cohort building activities. THI’s Graduate Fellowships help doctoral students throughout their academic programs, from the beginning of their Ph.D. to the end of their dissertation, while also providing much-needed time and funding to pursue groundbreaking scholarship.
Undergraduate Transfer Student Success—Majoring in the Humanities comes with high expectations for reading comprehension, writing and critical thinking. Your gift will help make pursuit of these majors accessible and achievable to students transferring into UCSC who may have had to overcome economic, educational, or social barriers, and who are often at a disadvantage in our major requirement classes. You can help build a robust culture for transfer student success, beginning with the bridge to community colleges and ensuring transfer students have access to critical opportunities for learning such as undergraduate research projects, experiential learning, and professional development.
Through our Humanities Student Success Fund, we provide access to experiential learning that enhances academic curriculum and prepares students for rewarding and impactful careers. With your support, we will increase access to things like paid internships, service learning, and research support for undergraduate, transfer, and graduate students studying the Humanities. Our students are eager for more opportunities that allow them to contribute to non-profit organizations, businesses, governmental agencies, and international programs while developing useful and sought-after job skills.
The Humanities Institute’s Public Fellows Program—Your gift will create paid internship opportunities for Humanities students to contribute to research, programming, communications, and other activities at non-profit organizations, companies, and cultural institutions. Graduate students select their placements based on their research and gain professional development for a range of careers. Undergraduate Public Fellows get hands-on training working with faculty and community partners like the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History and Senderos.
For more information about how you can help transform student success in the Humanities Division at UC Santa Cruz:
Cari Napoles, Senior Director of Development Humanities Division
Mobile: 415.747.4081