The mission of Founder Region Fellowship is to advance the status of women. This will be accomplished through financial support to women in the last year of their doctoral degree. A by-product of this support is affirmation of the importance of the recipient’s work and value as an individual.

Our hope is to support women who are working in fields that have great social importance to the world or are under-represented by women. We hope that the recipient’s work will reflect and further Soroptimist ideals. We believe that these women will become a strong voice for all women.

Founder Region Fellowship offers grants to women enrolled in graduate schools within the boundary of Founder Region who have advanced to candidacy and are entering into the last year of their doctoral programs. These grants-in-aid are proffered to assist women in the completion of their doctoral degrees.

The Fellowships are announced and formally presented at the annual Founder Region Spring Conference. The grant requirements are:

• Competition is open to any outstanding graduate woman who is working toward a doctoral degree, preferably in the last year of study but permissibly during the last two years provided she has advanced to candidacy. She must be enrolled in a graduate school within Founder Region; including the Northern California counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Solano, Sonoma, the State of Hawaii, and the U. S. territories of Guam and The Marianas.
• Candidates must submit to the Fellowship President. a completed application with supporting materials (as described in the application), applications to be postmarked not later than the 1st of February. The forms are available on this website or may be obtained through the dean of the applicant’s graduate school or by emailing the Fellowship President.
• Candidates considered for final selection will be required to appear for a personal interview on a date requested by the Fellowship board.
  • March 12, 2011 if in Hawaii
  • March 26 or 27, 2011 in California
• The awards are announced and formally presented on April 29, 2011 at the annual Founder Region Spring Conference.

NOVATO, California—On November 25, Soroptimist International of Novato will “paper the town purple”—the color associated with domestic violence—as they join with Soroptimists all over the world to distribute purple cards with domestic abuse prevention information to local businesses, in women’s restrooms and if possible, in employee paychecks. As an organization of working women whose mission is to improve the lives of women and girls, Soroptimist specifically targets the workplace, where several domestic violence victims are found each day.
The Soroptimist Workplace Campaign to End Domestic Violence coincides with the United Nations-designated International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women. Last year, more than 400 Soroptimist clubs participated.

“Many women cannot escape domestic violence when they go to work,” said Pauline Stuber, Soroptimist International of Novato president. “It follows them in the form of harassing phone calls and emails, or their abuser shows up at their place of business. Lateness, absenteeism, and lowered productivity in the workplace can result from domestic violence.”

According to a World Bank study, one in five work days lost for health reasons by women is the result of domestic violence. In the U.S., 96 percent of employed battered women experience problems at work due to domestic violence. There are 13,000 acts of violence against women at work each year by their partners. Homicide is the leading cause of on-the¬-job death for women, with some 20 percent of these women killed by their spouses or partners.

“The workplace is the ideal place to help women facing domestic violence because it’s where these women spend at least eight hours a day away from their abusers,” said Stuber, a project manager with the civil engineering company of CSW/Stuber-Stroeh Engineering Group.

Domestic violence also causes entire countries’ economies to suffer, and millions of dollars in health care, law enforcement and court costs can be lost. The Inter-American Development Bank found that the cost of domestic violence causes Canada to loose $1.6 billion per year. Researchers in the U.S. found that economic losses sustained as a result of domestic violence range from $10 billion to $67 billion per year.

“As business and professional women, Soroptimists feel uniquely qualified to tackle this issue,” Stuber said. “By distributing these cards, we are taking the first step in creating awareness of this important issue.”

Founded in 1973, Soroptimist International of Novato members join with almost 95,000 Soroptimists in about 120 countries and territories to contribute time and financial support to community-based projects benefiting women. In addition to participating in the Soroptimist Workplace Campaign to End Domestic Violence, the Anytown club participates in Soroptimist International of the Americas’ major service project, the Women’s Opportunity Awards program—cash grants for women seeking to improve their economic situation through additional training and/or education. Many of these women are domestic abuse survivors. For more information about how Soroptimist International of Novato improves the lives of women and girls, call Pauline Stuber at (415) 884-6454, or visit the club’s website at http://www.soropnovato.org.

Soroptimist International of Novato awards $1,000 annually to a woman who has primary financial responsibility for her family and is seeking to improve her economic status by gaining additional skills, training or education.
Eligibility requirements are:

•A woman with primary financial responsibility for supporting her family (including children, spouse, siblings and/or parents)
•Attend or have been accepted to a vocational/skills training program, or an undergraduate program
•Have financial need
•Be motivated to achieve their educational and career goals
•Live or work in Novato
Previous recipients and Soroptimist members and their immediate family are not eligible.
If you, or someone you know may qualify for this award you can click here to download the application form and also to download the accompanying reference form.

If you need more information, or need help with the application you can click here to request an application form or contact Renee Roberts at rroberts.novato@gmail.com.

Soroptimist International of Novato awards $500 annually to a young woman engaged in volunteer action within her community or school.
This award is in honor of the president of the first Soroptimist club, Violet Richarson, a woman of action, whose indomitable spirit and sense of personal responsibilty were demonstrated by her lifelong commitment to volunteering in her community.

The eligibility requirements are:

•Must be 14 – 17 years of age as of date of application submission.
•Must be engaged in volunteer activity.
•Soroptimists and immediate family are not eligible.
•Previous winners are not eligible.
•Must live or attend school in Novato
This award is based solely on the applicant’s volunteer work, and is an opportunity to honor a girl who might not otherwise receive recognition. She may not be the best student, athlete, or most popular, but is committed to making the world a better place.

Request an Application

Gilead House is a faith-based transitional home for single mothers in need located in Novato, California. Soroptimist International of Novato is a major supporter of this program that is designed to provide local women with not only housing, but also the skills and support they need to build a sustainable, healthy life for themselves and their families.
Gilead House’s (GH) origins can be traced back to 1997, when several members of BayMarin Community Church in Marin County, California were looking for ways to get their congregation more involved in the community. Some initial research revealed that there were more than 1,200 homeless children living in Marin at any given time, many of them under the care of a single mother (the number has gone up since then!).

Gilead House was formed as a response to this tremendous need. After a great deal of research, planning, and fund-raising, a 4-bedroom house in a quiet neighborhood was leased to serve as the first site of GH. Location was critical, because from the beginning the goal was to place families in an environment that felt like a home rather than a shelter or institution.

The first 3 families moved into GH in October of 1999, and since that time the Board, House Manager, and Executive Director have worked hard to fine-tune the program and help resident families transform their futures. To date, Gilead House has served 39 women and 55 children, and has been privileged to see dramatic changes in individual lives. Also, the network of church partners has grown to include 7 congregations who participate in the work of GH in some way.