Universities and companies are scaling back or eliminating women’s scholarships as a way to avoid scrutiny from the Trump Administration, even though officials haven't explicitly barred single-sex scholarships. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will stop awarding a women’s scholarship this fall. Middlebury College has ended a program that offered up to $25,000 a year to female students. And Duke University recently opened its Alice M. Baldwin Scholars Program — named for the first dean of its Woman's College — to all undergraduates, instead of just women.Major employers, including Palantir Technologies Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, have also dropped scholarships and initiatives aimed at increasing female representation. A database of more than 38,000 scholarships maintained by the National Scholarship Providers Association shows the number of grants with women-specific eligibility criteria has declined 19% since 2023, according to Jackie Bright, the group’s chief executive officer.The impact has been especially pronounced in math- and science-related fields. Although women earn the majority of college degrees, they account for less than a quarter of degrees in engineering and computing. Some economists worry that the pullback could stymie efforts to grow the pipeline of scientists, engineers and technologists needed to the keep the US competitive.Bloomberg
American universities are cutting women’s scholarships even when they don’t have to - The Economic Times
US colleges and companies are scaling back or opening women-only scholarships to all students amid heightened scrutiny of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives during the Trump administration. The rollback is particularly affecting STEM fields, raising concerns that fewer targeted opportunities could weaken the pipeline of future women scientists and engineers.
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