RBF Programs » Fellowships for Aspiring Teachers of Color

NEW YORK, NY (October 7, 2008) - The Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF) announced today that it is transferring its fellowship program for aspiring teachers of color to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, effective January 2009.   The Woodrow Wilson Foundation will assume full responsibility for the Fellowship program.  The RBF has made a $5 million commitment to support the transfer of the program.

The RBF has funded and managed Fellowships for Aspiring Teachers of Color since 1992.  The Fellowship program was created to help recruit, support, and retain individuals of color as public education teachers and administrators.  Since its inception the Fund has awarded nearly $8 million in grants and financial assistance to 350 Fellows.

"It has been a pleasure to see the Fellows program grow and produce so many outstanding teachers and administrators," said Stephen B. Heintz, president, Rockefeller Brothers Fund.  "Now we have an opportunity to significantly enhance the Fellowship program and extend its impact on public education and the teaching profession by transferring it to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, which has 60 years of experience in the education field."

The RBF's financial commitment to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation includes funding the classes of 2009, 2010, and 2011, other program and administrative expenses, and current fellowship obligations.  For the years for which the RBF is funding additional classes of Fellows, Woodrow Wilson will refer to the program as the Woodrow Wilson-Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellowships for Aspiring Teachers of Color.  After December 31, 2013, the program will be solely associated with the Woodrow Wilson name.

"Joining the Rockefeller Brothers Fund's Fellowships for Aspiring Teachers of Color with the Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship is both an opportunity and a privilege for the Woodrow Wilson Foundation," said Arthur Levine, president, Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. "The two programs share important principles and complement each other well. We are confident that bringing the two together will enhance both programs' impact on teacher quality, diversity, and effectiveness."

For six decades, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation has engaged in identifying and developing talented individuals to address the nation's greatest educational needs.  Woodrow Wilson has awarded fellowships to more than 20,000 scholars, who now include 35 MacArthur Fellows, 13 Nobel Laureates, two Fields Medalists in mathematics, 14 Pulitzer Prize winners, two U.S. Poets Laureate, and 21 recipients of Presidential and national medals. 

The Woodrow Wilson Foundation has developed significant experience in the recruitment and development of diverse talent pools with strong academic and personal potential, as well as the staffing and systems needed to ensure cost-effective management of fellowship programs. In addition to Arthur Levine, the Woodrow Wilson team, which will oversee the Fellowship program after the transfer, will be led by James Fraser, who has recently joined the Foundation as Senior Vice President for Programs. Woodrow Wilson will have full responsibility for determining changes and enhancements to the program design and components.

A fact sheet detailing the transfer can be found here.

About the Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Founded in 1940, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund encourages social change that contributes to a more just, sustainable, and peaceful world.  The RBF's grantmaking is organized around four themes:  Democratic Practice, Sustainable Development, Peace and Security, and Human Advancement and four pivotal places:  New York City, South Africa, Western Balkans, and Southern China.  On October 12, 2006, the RBF trustees approved a new cross-programmatic grantmaking initiative on energy.

About the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation identifies and develops the best minds for the nation's most important challenges. In these areas of challenge, the Foundation awards fellowships to enrich human resources, works to improve public policy, and assists organizations and institutions in enhancing practice in the U.S. and abroad.

Contacts:

Gail Fuller, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, at 212-812-4242 or gfuller@rbf.org.

Beverly Sanford, Woodrow Wilson, at 609-452-7007, ext 181 or Sanford@woodrow.org.

Additional Information

• Fellowship Program Transition Fact Sheet
• Fellows