$150 Million Gift Supports MSI Grads Pursuing STEM Ph.Ds. | Inside Higher Ed

Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg Philanthropies announced a new $150 million initiative to support graduates of historically Black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions seeking to pursue Ph.D.s in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.

The initiative, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, will provide permanent funding for approximately 100 new slots for graduates of HBCUs and MSIs to enroll in one of more than 30 STEM Ph.D. programs at Johns Hopkins.

The Ph.D. students recruited to Johns Hopkins through this program will be known as the Vivien Thomas Scholars and will be eligible for up to six years of stipend, health insurance and travel funding, along with mentorship, research and professional development opportunities; up to six years of tuition funding will be provided by the Ph.D. programs, departments or schools.

The gift also includes more than $15 million in funding to strengthen pathways into STEM Ph.D. programs through direct funding of HBCUs and MSIs to be used to help recruit and prepare undergraduate students for graduate STEM training at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere. The inaugural partner universities in this initiative are Howard, Morgan State and Prairie View A&M Universities, Morehouse and Spelman Colleges, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

The gift will also support new and expanded summer and postbaccalaureate programs for students from HBCUs and MSIs to meet Johns Hopkins faculty and students and to be exposed to the university’s research activities. Participants in the summer programs will receive full funding, including housing and a stipend.