Alison Ricky Bernstein (June 8, 1947,

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

– June 30, 2016) was an American historian, and program officer with the

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a $25,000 (about $550,000 in 2023) gift from Edsel Ford. ...

. She was an expert on Native Americans, as well as an advocate for social justice, improvement of higher education and women's studies.

Early life and education

Alison Bernstein was born on June 8, 1947, in

and grew up in

Roslyn Heights, New York Roslyn Heights is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the North Hempstead, New York, Town of North Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, on the North Shore (Long Island), North Shore of Long Island, in N ...

. She was born as an only child into a Russian-Jewish family. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in history from

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

in 1969. During her undergraduate studies, she was active in campus politics. Bernstein served as the president of her freshman class, and she was a member of Vassar Debate Club, the Student Judicial Committee, and the Young Democrats. After graduation, at the age of 22, she became the youngest person named to Vassar's board of trustees. She pursued master's degree studies in history at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

on a Danforth Scholarship, which is awarded to students "with passion for helping others". Bernstein graduated from her master's degree with the thesis ''American Indian and the New Deal'' in 1970. She also obtained a PhD in history from Columbia University in 1985, writing her dissertation on the impact of World War II on Native Americans, which later developed into her book ''American Indians and World War II: Toward a New Era in Indian Affairs''.

Career

After obtaining her master's degree in 1970, Bernstein started teaching at

Staten Island Community College Staten may refer to: ;People *Randy Staten (1944-2010), American politician and football player * Roy N. Staten (1913–1999), American politician ;Places *Staten Island, a borough of New York City, New York, United States *Staten, West Virginia ...

, and in 1974 got a job at the federal Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

In 1980, she left the fund to serve for two years as a dean at Sangamon State University, which was later acquired by the University of Illinois at Springfield. In 1982, she started her career in the

, where she was overseeing other grantmakers for the foundation's Education, Creativity and Free Expression Program. Bernstein worked at the Ford Foundation until 2010, with the exception of two years from 1990 to 1992, when she took a short leave in order to become an Associate Dean at

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

. She finished her career as a Director of the

Institute for Women's Leadership at Rutgers University The Institute for Women's Leadership (IWL) at Rutgers University is a consortium of ten units based at the Rutgers-New Brunswick campus. It is dedicated for the study of women and gender advocacy on behalf of gender equity, and the promotion of ...

, where she served from 2011 until her death in 2016.

Importance

Alison Bernstein is a highly regarded scholar in the fields of humanities and women's studies. At the Ford Foundation, she started a large number of initiatives that benefited historically underrepresented groups. Bernstein maintained program fellowships for minorities, and helped to create the International Fellowship Program with the largest Ford grant in history, which was $300 million for proven community leaders from marginalized communities around the world. In addition, she started The Native Arts and Cultures Fund, which makes grants available for Native artists and cultural leaders. She also supported the Women's Research and Resource Center at

Spelman College Spelman College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia ...

, which was the first women's research center at a

historically Black college Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

. She sponsored research that informed policy and practice in sexuality such as reproductive health, youth development, and LGBT concerns, which were controversial at that time, as well as pioneering work on the social role of religion in US society. Also, Bernstein showed support for community colleges and K-12 education reforms.

Publications

Books

* ''American Indians and World War II: Towards a New Era in Indian Affairs.'' 1991

Scientific work

* ''From Dogmas to Dilemmas.'' 2002 * ''Gender Differences: Struggles Around Needs and Rights in South Africa.'' 2001 * ''Book Review: Crazy for Democracy: Women in Grassroots Movements Temma Kaplan; Gender in Third World Politics Georgina Waylen.'' 1999 * ''Diversity and disadvantage: Feminist perspectives from the USA and South Africa.'' 1998 * ''Of Riots and Rainbows: South Africa, the US, and the Pitfalls''

References

External links

Alison Bernstein
''Jewish Women in America'', March 10, 2004.
Remembering Alison Bernstein
Ford Foundation, 11 July 2016
Alison Bernstein: A Remembrance
HistPhil, July 21, 2016 {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernstein, Alison 1947 births 2016 deaths American women historians 20th-century American historians 20th-century American women writers People from Roslyn, New York Historians from Brooklyn Writers from Brooklyn American people of Russian-Jewish descent Jewish American historians Vassar College alumni Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni College of Staten Island faculty Rutgers University people Princeton University people 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers Historians of Native Americans