Making Strides

Designed to recognize the importance of fostering diversity, equity, belonging and mutual respect at Baylor University, the Trailblazer Scholars Program has surpassed $2 million in additional fundraising since the program’s creation in July 2020.

An interdepartmental collaboration of staff and faculty from across campus planned and laid the infrastructure for the Trailblazer Scholars Program. The University committed $5 million in scholarship support at the program’s launch. Since then, the Baylor Family collectively has significantly moved the University toward its goal of adding an additional $5 million for the endowment.

“I am grateful for the alumni, parents and friends who have joined so quickly and enthusiastically in giving to help fund these important Trailblazer Scholars,” President Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D., said. “We are grateful to the Baylor faculty and staff who have spent so many hours thoughtfully planning and preparing for our first cohort of Trailblazers. We look forward to equipping and learning from these men and women who are our future leaders in such critically important conversations surrounding how we as a community foster diversity and how we as Christians practice mutual respect in conversations where we may not always agree.”

The inaugural Gilbert-Walker cohort of Trailblazer Scholars is named after Baylor’s first Black graduates Rev. Robert Gilbert, B.A. ’67, and Barbara Walker, B.A. ’67. Applications for the scholarship are open to any incoming first-year or upper-level students who demonstrate a commitment to advancing racial equality, diversity and a sense of belonging. Trailblazer Scholars will participate in leadership and service opportunities through Baylor’s Department of Multicultural Affairs and through other groups and programs on the University’s campus. Scholarship funds will be awarded annually and are renewable to students who maintain a 2.5 GPA and are actively committed to conversations and initiatives advancing racial conciliation on Baylor’s campus and throughout the nation.

The Trailblazer Scholars Program also reflects the University’s mission to educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service by integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment within a caring community.

In addition to gifts that will provide immediate support, the following endowed scholarships were established since the program launched to provide sustainable resources for the Trailblazer Scholars Program:

• Howard and Sue Cowan Endowed Scholarship Fund
• Roderick Morrison Endowed Memorial Scholarship Fund
• James and Lydia Perry Trailblazers Endowed Scholarship Fund
• Bell Family Trailblazers Endowed Scholarship Fund
• Blankenship/Marshall Family Endowed Trailblazers Scholarship Fund
• Camille Griffin Trailblazers Endowed Scholarship Fund