Spelman College creates scholarships for LGBTQ students

On Wednesday, Spelman College announced that it would be creating two scholarships to award to LGBTQ students.

The Levi Watkins Jr. Scholars Program “will call attention to the importance of making visible the courageous and significant work of LGBTQ scholar activists within and beyond the academy, especially at HBCUs,” Spelman professor Beverly Guy-Sheftall said during a press release.

The scholarships will be renewable $25,000 scholarships, with recipients to be named this upcoming fall.

Additionally, the college announced that it would be beginning a lecture series in which issues of race, gender, and sexuality would be examined.

“[T]his gift will present new opportunities for critical conversation on race and sexuality with distinguished scholars and thought leaders, and provide a platform to recognize campus LGBTQ advocates and their scholarly achievements,” said Spelman president Mary Schmidt Campbell.

Beverly Guy-Sheftall, who is founder of the Spelman Women’s Research and Resource Center launched the lecture series in May and pledged $100,000 to its cause. The series will see activists, organizers, and scholars alike coming to Atlanta to start a conversation.