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TIAA-CREF Endows Ruth Hamilton Research Scholarship

TIAA-CREF Endows Ruth Hamilton Research Scholarship

NEW YORK
TIAA-CREF, a national financial services company and retirement system for higher education and research employees, announced in June the creation of the Ruth Hamilton Research Scholarship, honoring the work of the late Michigan State University (MSU) Professor and TIAA Trustee Ruth Simms Hamilton.
The Hamilton Research Scholarship is funded by a $500,000 endowment from TIAA-CREF and will be administered by the TIAA-CREF Institute, the research and education unit of the company.
“Our company is proud to create a meaningful memorial to a beloved trustee, teacher and award-winning research pioneer,” said Herb Allison, chairman and CEO of TIAA-CREF. “Professor Hamilton brought passion and insight to her work and made tremendous contributions to both TIAA and Michigan State. This scholarship is being established so that our two institutions can pass along some of her visionary spirit to its recipients.”
In recognition of Hamilton’s years of valued service, the scholarship will be awarded to graduate students enrolled in a social science field relating to Urban/Black Studies or the African Diaspora at an accredited public or private university. 
The scholarship will be for one year and is renewable. It is intended to provide research support, but not necessarily cover all costs of a graduate study program.
A nine-member selection committee composed of representatives of TIAA-CREF, MSU and universities with Black/Urban Studies programs will determine the amount and number of individual scholarships to be granted each year. The committee will also establish criteria for the awards and will review and select applicants.
“This is a fitting tribute to the life of Professor Hamilton who committed herself to broaden the frontiers of knowledge on neglected fields of minority and urban issues,” said Dr. Clifton R. Wharton Jr., former chairman and CEO of TIAA-CREF and architect of the scholarship program.
Hamilton was a TIAA Trustee from 1989 to 2003. During her 35-year career at MSU she was a highly regarded sociology professor and a faculty member of the African Studies Center, the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and the Center for Advanced Study of International Development.
In 1986, Hamilton founded the African Diaspora Research Project (ADRP). The project, of which she served as director, examines the dispersion and settlement of African peoples beyond the African continent to gain a broader understanding of communities of African descent. At the time of her passing in November 2003, she was finalizing Routes of Passage, an 11-volume series on the project, which will be published by MSU Press.
Among the awards she received during her career were: the A. Wade Smith Award for Outstanding Teaching, Mentoring and Service by the Association of Black Sociologists; and the Ralph H. Smuckler Award for Advancing International Studies and Programs.
The TIAA-CREF Institute was established in 1998 with a mission to foster and conduct objective research, build knowledge, and enhance understanding of strategic and policy issues that impact institutional and individual financial decisions. For more information visit the institute’s Web site at <www.tiaa-crefinstitute.org>.



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