The opportunities made possible by the Priddy Award have helped many up-and-coming innovators like Noah Mathai pursue their passions. Seeing the impact that the Priddy Award had on their son motivated Thomas and Libby Mathai to establish the Thomas and Libby Mathai Scholarship for Women in STEM Fund.
For the Mathais, creating the Fund was meant to not only provide resources for students, but also to address another area where they see opportunities for improvement: connecting young women to opportunities in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). This resulted in their decision to designate their scholarship fund for the benefit of female students pursuing STEM careers.
According to the United States Census Bureau, even though women make up nearly half of the U.S. workforce, only 27% are employed in STEM fields.
“Women are definitely underrepresented in STEM,” said Noah. “Being able to see women younger than me go through the same process of receiving a scholarship—just like I did with the Priddy Award—to see their enthusiasm, to see them light up when their hard work is rewarded with a financial scholarship, means I get to live vicariously through those students and witness the same joy I felt. We are bettering STEM for women in the process. And that’s a great feeling.”
Read more about the Mathi family and the Thomas and Libby Mathai Scholarship for Women in STEM Fund here.
