Clare Boothe Luce Women in STEM Program

Overview

The Clare Boothe Luce Program for Women in STEM is dedicated to increasing the participation of women in the sciences and engineering at every level of higher education and to serving as a catalyst for colleges and universities to be proactive and transformational in their internal and external efforts toward this goal. 

To ensure that the Clare Boothe Luce Program remains maximally effective, the Luce Foundation has made some important revisions to the program. Beginning in 2024, eligible institutions will apply for funds to support undergraduate scholarships and research awards, graduate fellowships, and professorships—as they have in the past. Grant funds, though, will not be used to hire new faculty or to provide aid to students who weren’t already receiving it. Instead, grant funds will replace unrestricted institutional monies that are being used to compensate professors in the sciences who identify as women or to fund financial aid for students studying science who identify as women.

The unrestricted institutional funding "freed up” by the CBL grant during the grant period will be used to improve the climate for women in the sciences at the grantee institutions. Applicants will propose to undertake specific activities best suited to the needs of their institutions. For example, applicants might propose to use unrestricted institutional funds to create training programs for faculty or administrators, to conduct relevant institutional research, to develop and pilot mentorship programs, to launch partnerships with K-12 schools, and to offer or expand childcare programs. Please note, however, that the Foundation does not support building or capital projects, and freed-up funding cannot be used in this capacity.

Current CBL Grantees - An institution with a CBL grant may not submit a new application before its current grant has been officially closed. 

Waiting Period - Institutions with a prior CBL grant may not apply for a new grant in any category until three years after the award of their most recent Clare Boothe Luce Program grant (i.e., institutions that received CBL awards in 2021 or later are not eligible to apply for the 2024 competition).

The CBL competition is a two-step process. Interested institutions first submit an initial application form through our portal. After review by the CBL Selection Committee, a smaller group of these institutions are invited to submit a full proposal. Only institutions explicitly invited by the Selection Committee may submit a proposal. Institutions may request up to $750,000 to use over five years.

In addition to this CBL award, the Luce Foundation will offer grantees the opportunity to apply for a second grant, the CBL STEM Community grant. CBL STEM Community grants provide up to $300,000 to develop a STEM ecosystem with partner organizations outside CBL universities or colleges that will support STEM outreach and educational efforts and create possible pathways for higher education. 2024 CBL awardees will be eligible for an additional $100,000 planning grant to be used within the first year of the CBL award to develop a fuller proposal for this CBL STEM Community grant.

2024 Competition Timeline:
Monday, March 25th: 2024 Applications are due 
Mid to Late May: Selection Committee meeting to vote on applications; institutions notified of results. The proposal phase begins. 
Monday, September 2nd: Full Proposals are due