Higher Education Grants

Scope: Higher education has been a focus of the Foundation’s grantmaking since the Foundation’s very first grant in 1936 to Yenching University in Beijing. Over half of all grant monies awarded since the Foundation’s establishment have been to higher education institutions. Through its grants to colleges and universities, the Luce Foundation aims to advance three goals: (1) To stimulate and support scholarship, especially projects that break new ground and that cross disciplinary and geographic boundaries; (2) To ensure that high-quality research, especially in the humanities and qualitative social sciences, informs policymaking and public discussion; (3) To prepare the next generation of diverse scholars and academic leaders. Most of the grantmaking in support of these goals takes place through the Foundation’s thematic programs (such as American Art, Asia, Theology, or Clare Boothe Luce) or its special initiatives (like that on Religion in International Affairs). Funding: Grants in 2017 ranged from $30,000 to $200,000.