Giving
The Humanities Institute (THI) at UC Santa Cruz is a dynamic hub where ideas are tested, knowledge is created and shared, and new perspectives emerge. For 25 years, The Humanities Institute has pushed boundaries—sparking research, empowering students, and engaging the public.
Support Our Work
Invest in our most vital, high-impact initiatives and all three pillars of The Humanities Institute. Your gift will amplify research, accelerate student success, and connect global audiences to the Humanities.
“THI is willing to take on creative approaches to what it means to do work in the humanities, not just in my own case, but in many many cases among my colleagues and peers.”
Christian Alvarado, THI Hayden V. White Summer Dissertation Fellow 2020-21, SSRC-DPD Fellow 2019-20, THI Summer Research Fellow 2018-19
“THI enables the kind of interdisciplinary conversations essential for a thriving intellectual community. They invigorate fields with diverse, collaborative perspectives.”
Madhavi Murty, THI Faculty Fellow 2022-23
“We feel so lucky to have THI in Santa Cruz. Its programs connect us to world-class research and allow us to learn from UCSC’s brilliant faculty.”
George Ow Jr. and Gail Michaelis-Ow (Cowell ’74), UCSC Foundation Trustee Emerita
“UC Santa Cruz and The Humanities Institute have a distinctive reputation for creative, interdisciplinary exploration across the Humanities and interpretive social sciences. THI is an exemplar of public engagement.”
ACLS President Joy Connolly after her visit in 2023
Endowment for the Future:
Your gift to our endowment ensures THI’s legacy for decades to come. It will also ensure a thriving Humanities Institute that will shape the future of scholarship and public engagement
Support Our Students
Be a part of the Institute’s mission of giving bright and curious minds access to the resources they need to become tomorrow’s thought leaders. By supporting our students, you will invest in a new generation of critical thinkers, change-makers, and public influencers. Gifts to the following fellowships provide graduate and undergraduate students with much needed time and funds to pursue their research and exercise leadership in the humanities both within the university and in the public sphere.
Undergraduate Experiential Learning Fellowships
Undergraduate Experiential Learning Fellowships empower undergraduates to have immersive, in-depth, hands-on learning experiences—locally, nationally, and internationally and enable them to bridge the gap between theory and practice to prepare them for a range of careers.
Undergraduate Research Fellowships
Sponsor undergraduate research in the humanities. Your gift to this endowment fund will empower and enable undergraduates to dive into their chosen research project. Up to 10 awards in the amount of $500 each are given every year.
Graduate Student Fellowship Fund
With your support, The Humanities Institute is able to provide funding to graduate students throughout their graduate career at UC Santa Cruz. Graduate Research Fellowships provide grad students funding to complete their research as well as the needed time to focus on their research and to write their dissertation. This fund also provides support to our Public Fellows Program, which gives humanities doctoral students opportunities to contribute to research, programming, communications and fundraising at non-profit organizations, cultural institutions, or companies, allowing them to apply and expand their skills in a non-academic setting while engaged in graduate study.
Support THI’s Public Engagement Fund
Help us bring cutting-edge ideas into the public sphere. Your gift will support events like The Deep Read and signature lectures that inspire dialogue and action.
Contact Liz White (lizwhite@ucsc.edu), Director of Development, Humanities Division and the Library, for any questions or to discuss your gift to The Humanities Institute.