Nike helps to establish Jill Ker Conway Fellowship Fund at MIT Political Science Department
Image courtesy NIke, INC
NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) and MIT's Political Science Department are proud to announce the establishment of the Jill Ker Conway Fellowship Fund. The fund, seeded by a $700,000 gift from Nike, was established in honor of Ms. Jill Ker Conway, former President of Smith College and a member of Nike's Board of Directors for more than 24 years, including serving as the long-term chairwoman of the Board's Corporate Responsibility Committee. The new fellowship will provide support for one doctoral student as a way to help spotlight women's rights in the globalized workplace, a cause Conway has worked to elevate throughout her career.
"We are grateful to Nike for its generous gift to MIT Political Science" said Department Head, Professor Richard Locke, "and for recognizing Ms. Ker Conway, a long time supporter of the Department and our research program. This gift will also be a way to bring more focus to students and issues in developing countries. The fund along with the other endowed fellowships from Mr. Andronico Luksic and Mr. Jon Borschow will significantly help us in our efforts to strengthen the graduate program in the Department," says Locke.
"Jill helped establish Nike's Corporate Responsibility Committee in 2001 and elevated environmental and labor issues with the Board. Her insights and contributions to Nike for more than two decades were invaluable and we are delighted to be able to honor her in this way," said Hannah Jones, Nike's Vice President of Sustainable Business and Innovation.
"I am thrilled this Fellowship program will begin in the Fall. It will be the fulfillment of a dream which began for me as a graduate student when I decided to write a doctoral dissertation on the history of women's access to higher education, "said Jill Ker Conway. "In the course of researching it I began to broaden my research to include women workers in the early industrial revolution and so had a framework, many decades later, to help guide me to advocate for women in contract factories around the world."
The fellowship is open to current graduate students in MIT's Political Science Department. Recipients of fellowship support from the fund will be called Jill Ker Conway Fellows.
About MIT Political Science
MIT Political Science is one of the world's leading political science departments, attracting top-quality graduate students and faculty, and serving as home to several important educational and research activities. The Department promotes research and education that blends together analytical and theoretical rigor with policy relevance, aimed at solving the world's great challenges while also advancing the frontiers of knowledge. To fulfill this mission, MIT Political Science brings together the best and brightest minds from around the world to study and collaborate.
About NIKE, Inc.
NIKE, Inc., based near Beaverton, Oregon, is the world's leading designer, marketer and distributor of authentic athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for a wide variety of sports and fitness activities. Wholly owned Nike subsidiaries include Converse Inc., which designs, markets and distributes athletic footwear, apparel and accessories; Cole Haan, which designs, markets and distributes luxury shoes, handbags, accessories and coats; Umbro Ltd., a leading United Kingdom-based global football (soccer) brand; and Hurley International LLC, which designs, markets and distributes action sports and youth lifestyle footwear, apparel and accessories. For more information, visit www.nikeinc.com and follow @Nike.