Chapman Gets $500,000 Grant for 2 Programs

Chapman University won a grant of nearly $500,000 from the James Irvine Foundation to diversify both its student body and course offerings.

In the first grant of $265,000, Chapman science students will work with high school teachers in low-income areas to broaden the curricula and take the younger scientists on a series of one-day field trips to the university.

There, the high school students will use the labs, participate in seminars and generally get a better feeling for the field, university officials said.

“The beauty of this program is the way it will meet so many needs on so many levels,” said Chapman President James L. Doti. “No only will it help us continue to increase the diversity of our campus population, but it will also strengthen our science programs, serve our immediate minority community and support academic achievement.”

As of fall 1997, whites made up about 65% of the college’s undergraduate population. Latinos are the next highest group and constitute 13% of the 2,400 undergraduates on campus.

The second project, funded at $225,000, will create a new, multidisciplinary course called “Educating Global Citizens of the 21st Century: Cities and Civilizations.”

Using technology and travel abroad, the course will focus on cultures and cities and their place in the history of Western civilization.

The San Francisco-based James Irvine Foundation has given the university $2.5 million over the years to support scholarships, buildings and departments.