Scholarship Committee Chair Susan Scudder has announced the awarding of $40,000 in 2025 scholarship grants to ten institutions in the U.S. and India.  The grants go directly to the universities or comparable institutions.  They then choose the students to receive the scholarship money. 

The largest sum, $20,000, went to CMC Vellore while the remaining $20,000 was apportioned to nine seats of higher learning in the United States. 

“All are outstanding centers of advanced learning and service,” said Susan.  “They were chosen for their excellence in the fields of theology, medicine, education, social studies, and the humanities, all central to the Scudder motto of ‘Service to Others.’  Many of them educated or trained members of the Scudder family, people who went on to provide great service to humanity in the U.S. and abroad.”

Following is the breakdown.

$20,000 has been sent to the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India.

We’ve requested that approximately 75% of this gift be devoted to students attending the School of Nursing. The remaining 25% is intended to support students of the Allied Health Professions.

$4,000 was awarded to Eden Theological Seminary, Webster Groves, Missouri. The school has selected the recipient, Rev. Christopher David Charles, a divinity student from Vellore, India.  It is one of six seminaries of the United Church of Christ and has turned out a number of notable Christian leaders.

$2,000 went to the University of Chicago Divinity School, Chicago, Illinois. This is one of the world’s leading institutions in the academic study of religion.  Its Master of Divinity program equips students not just for traditional ministry, but for leadership in such venues as hospitals, non-profits, and universities.

$2,000 has been sent to Cornell University Department of Sociology, Ithica, NY. The Scudder connection:  Dr. Ida S. Scudder graduated from Cornell Medical College in 1899 as part of the first class that accepted women as medical students.

$2,000 was allocated to Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA. The grant will be used to establish the Scudder Foundation Graduate Award Fund, a current use fund. This will provide financial assistance to students enrolled at the School of Education who are pursuing a Master of Science degree in Special Education.  The Scudder connection: Ida Belle Scudder graduated in 1928 with an MD from Women’s College of Pennsylvania which eventually became part of Drexel University.

$2,000 went to Lehigh University, College of Education, Bethlehem, PA. The College offers degrees in Special Education at several different levels, including an accelerated Master’s program. Students earn eligibility for a Special Education teaching certificate from the Pennsylvania Department of Education in grades PreK to12. The Scudder connection: William McIlvane Scudder, the third president of the Scudder Association was graduated from Lehigh. He founded the Newark Evening News, New Jersey’s most powerful paper for decades.

$2,000 is being sent to Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, NJ.

The Scudder Connection: The library at Princeton Theological Seminary houses thousands of records and documents of the Scudder family and the Scudder Association.

 $2,000 was awarded to Cornell Weill Medical School, New York, NY.

The medical college is one of the finest in the country. The Scudder Connection: In the past, a scholarship named for Ida S. Scudder was given by the Scudder Association to a Cornell Weill Medical student for a semester of studies at CMC in Vellore, India.  No record of when, how or why the scholarship was discontinued can be found at present.

$2,000 went to Columbia University Teachers College, New York, NY.

This grant will be awarded to a student enrolled in their special education studies program. Columbia University was the alma mater of Dr. John Scudder (1900 -1976) who was a direct descendant of the missionary Scudders of India. He completed medical school at Columbia and subsequently created the New York City blood banks.  He discovered how to extract, preserve, and ship blood plasma and established the Plasma for Britain program during WWII. Dr. John is credited with saving thousands, if not millions of lives. 

$2,000 is designated for Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA.  The money is to be awarded to a student in their humanities program. Mt. Holyoke’s Scudder graduates include Dr. Ida B. Scudder, Fran Scudder Glesson (Cy Sherman’s aunt), Isabelle Scudder Farrington whose 1940 endowment for administration, scholarships and Indian hospitals makes the educational grant program possible, and Sue Cochran Swanson, our current president.