The Trusteeship

Leadership and Education Fund

The Leadership and Education Fund for the Betterment of Women, Inc. (LEF) was established in 1999 as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Donations to this organization are tax-deductible and it is also able to receive contributions from other entities to fund programs within its charitable purpose. The goal is for the fund to serve as an endowment for The Trusteeship’s philanthropic endeavors.

Dr. Miriam Laker2020 Recipient

In 2020, The Trusteeship’s Leadership & Education Fund sponsored Dr. Miriam O. Laker, a deserving leader for her participation in the IWF Fellows program.

Dr. Miriam O. Laker is a Medical Doctor and Senior Research Scientist at the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) at Makerere University based in Kampala, Uganda. Early in her career, she coordinated the first non-pharmaceutical clinical trial at the IDI. Because of her exceptional work at the IDI in collaboration with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), she was able to successfully apply and win an NIH-NCI D43 grant. She was awarded a full scholarship to UCSF, where she received advanced training in clinical research, epidemiology, and biostatistics. Her primary research interest revolves around the epidemiology of the two most common HIV associated cancers in Africa – cervical cancer and Kaposi’s sarcoma – and finding innovative ways to provide access to their early diagnosis and treatment.

Learn More About Miriam 

We had the honor to meet Dr. Laker “virtually” on Nov. 12, 2020 in our Spotlight on our Leadership & Education Fund: A Conversation with Dr. Miriam Laker. Click below to watch this very special conversation with Dr. Miriam Laker, MD and Senior Clinical Research Scientist who joined us from Kampala, Uganda.

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Watch our video below to see some of our Awardees speak about how the Adrienne Hall Emerging Leadership Award has impacted their non-profit organizations.

Two awards have been created to meet the LEF goals:

Meredith MacRae

Meredith MacRae

In 2000, “The Meredith MacRae Empowerment Award” was created through a generous gift in honor of Meredith MacRae. This award focuses on prominent women leaders who are making a significant difference in others’ lives around the globe. Awards have been distributed to the following distinguished women and their organizations in recognition of their work:

  • Molly Melching, Founder of TOSTAN in Senegal, West Africa (2000) tostan.org
  • Dame Cicely Saunders, founder, St. Christopher’s Hospice in London, England (2001) stchristophers.org.uk
  • Zainab Saldi, Founder, Women for Women International (2003) womenforwomen.org
  • African Development Fund, in memory of our late member Willie Compbell (2006) afdb.org/en
  • Adrienne Hall Women’s Mentorship Fund at the Kennedy School, Harvard University, in memory of our late Founder (2007)
  • Dr. Astrid Heppenstall Heger of the VIP Community Mental Health Center (2008) violenceinterventionprogram.org
  • Ellen Rosenberg, co-Founder of CHOSA (Children of South Africa) (2009) chosa.org
  • Olga Murray, Founder of the Nepal Youth Foundation (2012) nepalyouthfoundation.org
  • Debby Rooney, co-Founder, BEADS for Education, Kenya (2014) beadsforeducation.org
  • Jenny Bowen, Founder, OneSky, China (2016) onesky.org
  • Neema Namadamu, Founder, Hero Women Rising (2018) herowomenrising.org & Razia Jan, Razia’s Ray of Hope (2018) raziasrayofhope.org

 

Adrienne Hall

Adrienne Hall

In 2009, at the Board of Director’s direction, “The Adrienne Hall Emerging Leadership Award” was established for the purpose of making grants to emerging women leaders who demonstrate effective and exemplary leadership skills, women who are imbued with a determination to make a difference in others’ lives. These women are emerging leaders from southern California who work within a nonprofit organization. Awardees have been:


“When I joined The Trusteeship, I had spent my whole life in government service and nonprofit organizations. The Trusteeship has introduced me to previously unfamiliar worlds (corporate, military, film, international) and the wonderful women who populate them, and in the process helped me better appreciate their work and my own.”

– Ruth