Sydney R. Shuman Women & Science Graduate Fellowship
The Rockefeller University mourns the loss of our esteemed benefactor Sydney Shuman, who passed away on September 7, 2023. To honor Sydney’s legacy and devotion to advancing the careers of women scientists, the Shuman family and Rockefeller University are establishing an endowed Sydney R. Shuman Women & Science Graduate Fellowship. Individuals who would like to contribute to the fellowship can do so online.
A leading light in the New York City philanthropic community, Sydney joined the Rockefeller University Council in 1995, commencing a nearly three-decades-long tenure with the university. In 2001, Sydney was elected to the university’s Board of Trustees on which she served with distinction. She was elected a Trustee Emerita in 2017. With her beloved husband, Stanley S. Shuman, Sydney generously supported many of the university’s institutional priorities, including the endowment of a professorship, and the Women & Science and Parents & Science Initiatives. She and Stan were deeply involved with the life of the university, attending campus events and establishing friendships with members of our faculty and staff.
In 1997, Sydney played a leading role in establishing Rockefeller’s Women & Science Initiative, serving as one of its four Founding Chairs with Rockefeller University Council members Lydia Forbes, Isabel Furlaud, and Trustee Emerita Nancy Kissinger. One of the university’s most admired, transformative, and emulated programs, Women & Science has introduced thousands of women to Rockefeller, underscored the importance of basic scientific research, and inspired them to embrace science as a focus of their philanthropy. At the same time, the initiative has played a pivotal role in advancing the careers of women investigators at the university by building a culture of opportunity and highlighting the crucial role of women in scientific discovery. With Sydney’s guidance for more than 25 years, Women & Science has raised more than $50 million in support of Rockefeller’s women researchers. In honor of their transformative work, Sydney and her fellow Women & Science Founding Co-Chairs were awarded the 2015 David Rockefeller Award for Extraordinary Service to The Rockefeller University, the university’s highest non-scientific honor.
Gifts by check may be sent to:
Laurel Birch
Senior Director, Women & Science Initiative
The Rockefeller University
1230 York Avenue, Box 164
New York, NY 10065-6399
The check should be payable to “The Rockefeller University” and should indicate that this is a gift to the Shuman W&S Fellowship.
