Elinor Kleber Diggs '23 and Kanon Sugino '23

Dance Students Create New Racial Equity Fund Scholarship

“An endowed scholarship ensures that future generations of talented dancers will have the opportunity to pursue their dreams.”
—Kleber Diggs

Dance majors Elinor Kleber Diggs ’23 and Kanon Sugino ’23 first created the Racial Equity Group (REG) to cultivate equity and uplift students of diverse backgrounds in the Conservatory of Dance and spent the first two years strengthening an inclusive and welcoming environment for all.

In early 2022, the group launched a fundraising campaign to create an endowed scholarship that would provide students from disadvantaged backgrounds with the financial support needed to become the next generation of professional dancers and choreographers.

Kleber Diggs and Sugino rose to the challenge, raising the $25,000 minimum to create a scholarship endowment by bringing in $12,500 by the June 30, 2022 deadline, which secured matching funds through the J2 Scholarship Challenge Grant for Student Success. The Racial Equity Fund is expected to award its first scholarship in 2025.

“We thank everyone who joined us in this mission to promote equity and diversity in the arts and help us create a brighter future for the next generation of dancers.”
—Kleber Diggs & Sugino

GIVE

Note: To make a gift, select “The Purchase Fund,” and type “Racial Equity Fund Scholarship” in the Gift Reference field.

Miriam Arsham Scholarship

Miriam Arsham, award-winning film editor and longtime Professor of Film, passed away on June 23, 2023, a few months shy of 103 years old. Demanding and nurturing, Arsham taught a generation of Purchase film students the art of telling stories through moving images. Her enthusiasm for teaching and love of filmmaking were infectious and inspired all who studied with her. She lived a life filled with music, film, travel, and friends.

On the occasion of her 100th birthday, Purchase College Founding Film Professor Thomas Gunning, now-retired Professor of Film Iris Cahn ’76, and award-winning alumni Chris Wedge ’81, Hal Hartley ’84, and Tom Cross ’93 rallied fellow Purchase alumni to endow The Miriam Arsham Endowed Scholarship Fund to support students in the School of Film and Media Studies who show promise, but come from demanding circumstances and need assistance in completing their senior film projects.

Gifts to the fund in Mimi’s honor will endow support for student film projects in perpetuity.

Learn more and make a gift.