LUCE FOUNDATION GIFT
STRENGTHENS COLLEGE'S ASIA LINKS
Ties to Asia extend back to 1907 when Chinese
student came to Wellesley
WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley College's
historic ties to Asia have received a boost with the recent
$2 million gift from the Henry Luce Foundation to strengthen
and expand academic programs in that part of the world. The
contribution was made in honor of Elisabeth Luce Moore,
Class of 1924, in celebration of her 75th reunion year. Beth
Moore, who was born in China, has been a persistent voice
for women's leadership, international education, and
increased understanding of Asia.
"This generous gift supports global education and
experiential learning, two areas that are increasingly
important priorities for Wellesley," noted Wellesley College
President
Diana Chapman Walsh in announcing the grant. "Women
trained in international studies today -- with direct
experience in other countries, cultures, and languages --
will have unprecedented opportunities to help shape the
course of global policy, business, and development."
Three-quarters of the Luce Foundation's gift will create
a permanent endowment to fund international internships and
teaching fellowships in Asia. This summer, three or four
undergraduates will be selected to participate in summer
internships in Hong Kong.
These internships are open to students in any major who
will have completed their sophomore or junior years.
Placements will be available in fields ranging from
international corporations and scientific laboratories to
public policy and service organizations. On their return,
students will undertake academic projects designed to link
their internship experiences with their studies at
Wellesley. The program hopes to expand both the number and
the location of Asia-based internships in future years. The
fund also will support at least three year-long teaching
fellowships for recent Wellesley graduates at Chung
Chi College in Hong Kong and Ginling
College for Women in Nanjing, China.
In addition, the gift will create an Asia Opportunity
Fund to provide five years of seed money to seek and support
good ideas for expanding Wellesley's relationships with Asia
through the Wellesley-Yenching program. This support will
allow the College to explore initiatives such as
student-faculty research partnerships, faculty-led January
courses in Asia, and exchanges of faculty and professionals
in residence. Successful projects will be incorporated into
the Wellesley-Yenching program.
"This gift from the Luce Foundation ensures that Asia
will be a central part of Wellesley's commitment to global
education as we enter the new century. It is a very exciting
opportunity for our students, faculty and all the members of
the College community," said Professor William A. Joseph,
who will serve as the first faculty director for the
Elisabeth Luce Moore International Internships and
Fellowships and the Asia Opportunity Fund. Joseph is chair
of Wellesley's political science department and co-director
of the Chinese Studies program.
* * *
The Wellesley-Yenching Program was established in 1923 to
support an alumna to teach English for three years at
Yenching University in Beijing. Beth Moore, whose father had
been vice president of Yenching, was instrumental in
mobilizing support from Wellesley alumnae for the program.
While the relationship with Yenching was discontinued in
1949 when all Western-style colleges on the mainland were
closed, it was revived in 1961 at Chung Chi College. In 1993
the exchange was expanded back to the mainland, to Ginling
College, a women's college located on the campus of Nanjing
Normal University.
Wellesley's links to Asia extend back to 1907 when one of
the first Chinese women to attend college in the United
States came to Wellesley under a scholarship established by
the Board of Trustees to foster "friendly relations between
women of the oldest and youngest civilizations in the
world." In 1908, a group at Wellesley began raising funds to
send to the institution that would become Yenching
University, which was formally adopted as Wellesley's sister
college in 1919.
* * *
The Henry Luce Foundation was established in 1936 by the
late Henry R. Luce, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Time
Inc. With assets of $1 billion, the foundation supports
programs focusing on American art, east Asia, higher
education, public affairs, theology, and women in science.
The foundation's website is www.hluce.org.
* * *
Wellesley College is a prominent liberal arts college and
has been a leader in the education of women for more than
120 years. The College's 500-acre campus near Boston is home
to about 2300 undergraduate students. Wellesley's
distinguished alumnae include First Lady Hillary Rodham
Clinton, Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, Madame
Chiang Kai-shek, and broadcast journalists Cokie Roberts,
Diane Sawyer, and Lynn Sherr.
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Wellesley College: Providing an excellent liberal arts
education
for women who will make a difference in the world.
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