Scholarships

Today, women are still more likely to be pouring the coffee in global boardrooms than sitting on the boards. According to Corporate Women Directors International, women hold just 10.4% of the board seats of global 200 companies, as ranked by Fortune Magazine.Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarships are helping women pursuing undergraduate degrees in business management overcome gender barriers, from the classroom to the boardroom. Since 1998, Zonta Women in Business Scholarships have helped women find their place in the business world.

How is the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship Program supported?Women in Business Scholarships are made possible through investment income generated by the Klausman bequest, and by generous contributions from Zontians, Zonta Clubs and friends of Zonta.

History

Jane M. Klausman, member of the Zonta Club of Syracuse, New York, USA and Zonta International Parliamentarian from 1990-1995, knew first-hand the challenges faced by young women pursuing careers in business and understood the importance of helping women become business leaders.With this in mind, she left a generous bequest to the Zonta International Foundation, from which the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship Program was established.

The progress of women in the last century has dramatically changed the opportunities available to women, yet women's participation in positions of public influence continues to lag behind. Though women account for nearly 50 percent of the workforce, only 10 percent hold positions in the world's parliaments.

Zonta International believes young women are the key to women's advancement in the field of public service. The Young Women in Public Affairs (YWPA) Awards encourage young women who have demonstrated leadership skills and interest in civic causes to continue pursuing their dreams.

Since 1990, the Awards have recognized pre-university and pre-college women students committed to leadership in public policy, government and volunteer organizations.

How is the YWPA Award Program supported?

Young Women in Public Affairs Awards are made possible by generous contributions to the Zonta International Foundation Young Women in Public Affairs Fund.

The Zonta Club of Everett recognizes women in transition by offering scholarships each year for women to complete their education to reenter the work force.