UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP

The Gender Institute and the Experiential Learning Network awards two scholarships to UB undergraduate students. One $500 award for undergraduates conducting research related to women, gender and/or sexuality, and another $500 award for a community-based project with a gender and/or sexuality focus.
Projects can be individual or collaborative. Open to undergraduates in all schools and departments.

Undergraduate Scholarship applications are due February 26, 2024.

Congratulations to the 2023 Undergraduate Scholarship Awardees

Rachel Galet

A person with short brown hair, outdoors, smiling at the camera.

Rachel Galet is an undergraduate student in the GGS and Media Studies departments. She is also a student ambassador of the Global Gender Studies department.

Rachel's project is The Art of Gender. This event will show the strength and resilience of the GGS department and the wider University at Buffalo community a by providing a space where people can display artwork, research, and possibly performances regarding gender and LGBTQ+ issues. The event will be dedicated to discussing important topics within the community. 

June Sherpa

Woman wearing a black blazer with arms crossed, smiling at the camera.

June Sherpa is a Business Administration student and part of the Honors College.

June will be going to Singapore to study abroad in the fall semester of 2023. While aboard, she plans to work on a community project with Singaporean girls and women and complete her honors college thesis. June is interested in working with the Singapore Institute of Management to host an all-day event dedicated to professional development. Through this event, she wants to address issues regarding gender stereotypes and norms in professional spaces and hopes to shine a light on how women can explore their strengths and overcome barriers to business and professional advancements in their lives. 

Undergraduate Scholarship Applications are due February 26, 2024.

Guidelines

Applications must include:
1.  Statement of academic interests, accomplishments, and career goals (no more than 500 words).
2. Description of the specific research or community project for which you are seeking support (500 words). If you are a visual studies student, please also include a portfolio of 5 images of your work. 
3. Complete transcripts from all colleges attended (unofficial transcripts accepted).
4. Resume or c.v.
5. One letter of recommendation, which must be from a faculty member.
   (Recommendation is sent directly from faculty member to the Scholarship Portal.)

Supplemental Questions
1.  Are you working on a research project toward publication or an honors thesis?
2.  Are you an art or media study student working on gender and/or sexuality and you need resources for an art project or senior project?
3.  Are you interested in organizing a community event that would address gender, and/or LBGTQ issues?
4.  Are you working on a research project that requires travel funds for fieldwork, interviews, research in historical archives?

Applications should be sent to the Scholarship Portal.

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Criteria of Evaluation:

1. Applicants must show a commitment to issues related to gender and/or sexuality
2. Applicants must show evidence of academic excellence
3. Priority is given to applicants with a well-articulated project and research goals
4. Review committee places importance on the letter of recommendation.

2018-2019 Awardees

Congratulations to our scholarship winners, Hanna Santanam (Anthropology and English) and Alivia Smeltzer-Darling (Romance Languages and Literatures).

Hanna Santanam

Anthropology and English, class of 2019

Hanna Santanam.

Hanna's academic interests lie at the intersection of Gender Studies, South Asian Studies, English, and Anthropology. Her senior thesis with honors in the Department of Anthropology focuses on the rights of gender and sexual minorities in India post-independence as protected by law. During the Spring 2019 semester, she will travel to Columbia University to meet with experts and use resources in the law library. 

 

 

 

Alivia Smeltzer-Darling

Romance Languages and Literatures, class of 2021

Alivia Smeltzer-Darling.

Alivia’s research project focuses on sexual violence against women throughout Latin American cinematic history, dating from the mid-20th century to present day. Through the examination of Latin American films coupled with historical analysis of the eras that surrounded these films, the project will culminate with an essay, film screenings, and a public discussion about the theme of sexual violence in media over time, as well as its cultural implications.

 

 

 

Past Awardees

2017-2018

Rachel Charette

History, class of 2018

Rachel Charette.

Rachel's Senior Honors Thesis discusses women's involvement in social justice on college campuses during the 1940's. While the majority of her research has been through the University at Buffalo's Archives, she is looking to visit other college campuses to review their preserved student newspapers, memoirs, and more. Her current research has revealed that after the majority of men left UB to fight in WWII, women became strong leaders on our campus. They actively spoke out against segregation, antisemitism, and racial injustice while also combating misogynistic attitudes that featured prominently at our school. As she progresses through her thesis, she aims to review perspectives from women of multiple identities to provide a more complete and accurate picture of the accomplishes of women during this time. So far, this has also included women like Pauli Murray from Howard University who led sit-ins to desegregate Washington D.C. She hopes to use her thesis to showcase the brilliance and leadership of women by adding to the scholarly discussion on the history of social justice.

Isabel Hall

Environmental Engineering, class of 2019

Isabel Hall.

In Summer 2018, Isabel's organization Inspiring Future Engineers will be hosting a "Girls in STEM" empowerment event in the City of Buffalo (community center TBA). This all-day event will feature strong female STEM leaders, including female engineering students from UB and professional engineers. The organization will be hosting an array of engaging STEM activities, encouraging girls to recognize their power to excel in science and engineering. By facilitating interactions between Buffalo's youth and young women in STEM, they leverage the strong impact that role models have on girls, and building the next generation of female scientists and engineers.To overcome financial challenges faced by families in underserved communities of Buffalo, the UB Gender Institute Scholarship will be used to fund this event entirely. With the UB Gender Institute Scholarship, Inspiring Future Engineers has the opportunity to impact the lives of dozens young girls in Buffalo. This event serves as an excellent opportunity for girls in underserved communities to build confidence, establish important relationships with STEM role models, and become empowered to create positive change in the community.

2016-2017

Sarah Stanford.

Sarah Stanford

Gender Institute - The Academies Undergraduate Scholarship 2016-17
Second Scholarship winner in three years to move onto a Fulbright Teaching Assistantship!

After completing research on her project, Educational Experiences of Young, Bhutanese-Nepali WomenSarah Stanford was awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Malaysia! ​Working with Dr. Wooksoo Kim in UB's School of Social Work and Dr. Arabella Lyon in the Department of English, Sarah studied factors that affect educational resilience, health and wellness in Buffalo's Bhutanese-Nepali community.  Sarah effused, "These past 10 months have truly been a journey of discovery for me, and I am . . . where I am now because I gave my time, energy and passion to exploring the vast amount of information available in the UB Libraries and in the field.  I am where I am now because of the generous funding from the Gender Institute and Undergraduate Academies and the tremendous support of my advisers Dr. Kim and Dr. Lyon.  I am where I am now because of the education I received at the SUNY University at Buffalo as a whole."

 

2015-2016
Cathleen Alarcón, Romance Languages and Literatures

2014-2015
Samah Asfour, Political Science and Global Gender Studies

2013-2014
Kerri Pickard-DePriest, Environmental Studies and English
Sharlene Green, Political Science and African American Studies

"Since the 2014-15 academic year, two of the scholarship awardees, Samah Asfour and Sarah Stanford, have won prestigious Fulbright English Teaching Assistantships (ETA) and a third, Cathleen Alarcón, received permission from Mexican playwright Bárbara Colio to translate Colio’s 2014 play “Casi Transilvania” from Spanish into English."