College of Education and Human Development

Family Social Science

Giving matters

Your generous support of the Department of Family Social Science is more critical than ever, helping us retain the very best scholars and students. Gifts for undergraduate scholarships help attract and retain promising students while easing the burden of rising tuition. Support for graduate fellowships enables the department to compete nationally and internationally for top graduate students, enhancing our research.

You make us great

The Department of Family Social Science continues to rank as one of the leading departments in the country. Advancing the traditions of innovative applied scholarship allows us to recruit the best young faculty and graduate students in the field, broadening the scope of our research while enriching both undergraduate and graduate education.

What your gift can do

Your tax-deductible support for the Department of Family Social Science helps us attract and retain the very best scholars and students even as state funding declines. It gives our faculty resources for enlarging knowledge and understanding in childhood trauma, citizen engagement, couple and family therapy, and financial well-being.

Quote from Chalandra Bryant

a professor in family social science

This fellowship provides me with an opportunity to meet with and talk with Dr. Boss on a regular basis about my work. I have been able to incorporate ambiguous loss in studies that I’m conducting.

Choose a fund

    To support graduate students in the Department of Family Social Science. Preference will be given to those students whose research focuses on issues that face women in today's society.

    College of Education and Human Development
    This CEHD fund supports research activities related to the outreach, prevention, and intervention techniques of children and families exposed to traumatic events.

    The purpose of this fund is to assist in recruiting and supporting visiting outstanding faculty members or PhD scholars to teach and conduct research in the Department of Family Social Science.

    This fund may be used for any purpose, which supports the teaching, research, and service activity of the Ambiguous Loss Visiting Scholar, at the discretion of the dean.

    The David H. and Karen Olson Marriage and Family Fellowship Fund, launched in 2007, provides funding for graduate fellowships in the Department of Family Social Science for students enrolled in a degree program in the field of marital and family systems. Recipients are in good academic standing, with exceptional potential in their field, preference is given to students who are interested in any project related to the Circumplex Model of Marital and Family Systems.

    Income earned from David Olson Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, established in 2001, is used to support the Department of Family Social Science. An annual award will be made to a doctoral candidate, funding to a maximum at a 50% level. This award would be made for the purpose of successfully completing a doctoral dissertation in the department including presentation of papers at national conferences which further the growth of the student as well as the academic content of the profession.

    This fund has been combined with the David and Karen Olson Fellowship.

    Income earned from David Olson Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, established in 2001, is used to support the Department of Family Social Science. An annual award will be made to a doctoral candidate, funding to a maximum at a 50 percent level. This award would be made for the purpose of successfully completing a doctoral dissertation in the department including presentation of papers at national conferences which further the growth of the student as well as the academic content of the profession.

    Since 1995, the Friends of the Family Assistantship has been utilized to endow an assistantship for a Family Social Science graduate student to work on a research or teaching project with a faculty member.

    The Jan Hogan Fellowship has provided Fellowships in Family Social Science Department since 2001.

    This CEHD fund supports graduate students enrolled in the FSoS' parent and family education program who have a strong interest in research, teaching, and application of parent education theories and practice. 

    This fellowship honors long-time researcher, educator, and faculty member Jean W. Bauer, PhD, for her dedicated service. During her 29-year career at the University of Minnesota, Jean Bauer, PhD, was an active researcher committed to the study of families and economic well-being, a dedicated mentor for graduate students, and an active participant in university, collegiate, and departmental governance. This fund exists as a testament to her legacy in family economics and policy, and facilitates the recruitment of exceptional students in the field.

    The Neubeck/Maddock Scholarship was established to assist students presenting papers at national conferences.

    The Ott International Student Fellowship Fund has provided funding since 2007 for graduate fellowships and support in the Family Social Sciences Department. Recipients of the award are full-time graduate students enrolled in a degree program in the Department of Family Social Science, are in good academic standing, and have exceptional potential in their field.

    This CEHD fund supports the activities of the parent education program, including but not limited to lectures, visiting professors, research seed money for students, and more.

    The Shirley Zimmerman Fund supports doctoral dissertation, faculty research, colloquium, symposium or conferences regarding family policy since 2000.

    Learn more

    To learn more about ways to give, email the CEHD Office of External Relations at cehdexrl@umn.edu or call 612-625-1310.