When Dafydd Lewis died in 1941, he left a legacy that would help young men with limited financial resources receive a tertiary education. 

While it helped tackled social inequity, it inadvertently entrenched the gender inequity that marked the era. 

Years later, a group of beneficiaries of the Dafydd Lewis Scholarship helped right that wrong by setting up the parallel Mary Jane Lewis Foundation (MJLF) in memory of Lewis’ second wife. 

The Foundation supports women with limited financial resources to also receive a tertiary education, with a particular focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. 

>This year, the Foundation has been able to fund 12 scholarship placements for young women studying at the tertiary level, including a second-year agricultural student.

“By promoting STEM, the Foundation hopes to help women enter careers they may not be able to have traditionally been able access and support them in these industries through mentoring connections and professional development opportunities,” Equity Trustees Relationship Manager, Kiera Moloney, said.

Those personal and professional development opportunities include in-person network events and seminars, while all second-year students have the choice to be paired with a mentor. 

"Through Equity Trustees’ connections, we have been able to facilitate an industry-based mentor for the agricultural recipient with an industry leading female CEO,” Moloney said.

Equity Trustees has supported the Foundation through its workplace giving program, and it has also attracted support from an active philanthropist, which is helping address the historic disparity between the number of scholarships awarded by the Dafydd Lewis Trust and the Mary Jane Lewis Foundation.

Read more stories like these in our 2022 Annual Giving Review or find out more about philanthropy here