The Welch Foundation, based in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, is one of the United States' oldest and largest private funding sources for chemistry researchers. It is a non-profit organization named for Robert Alonzo Welch, an industrialist who provided the funds to set up the foundation, along with scholarships, endowments, and funding for chemical research. Since its founding in 1954, the organization has contributed to the advancement of chemistry through research grants, departmental grant programs, endowed chairs, scholarships, and other special projects at educational institutions in Texas. The foundation hosts an annual chemical research conference in Houston that attracts leading chemists from around the globe and also sponsors The Welch Award in Chemistry as well as the Norman Hackerman Award in Chemical Research.

Grants, scholarships, endowments, and awards

*The Welch Award in Chemistry, currently a $500,000 award, which recognizes the value of chemical research contributions for the benefit of humankind. *The

Norman Hackerman Norman Hackerman (March 2, 1912 – June 16, 2007) was an American chemist, professor, and academic administrator who served as the 18th President of the University of Texas at Austin (1967–1970) and later as the 4th President of Rice Universit ...

award in chemical research, currently a $100,000 award, which recognizes the work of young researchers in Texas. *The Robert A. Welch TILF (Texas Interscholastic League Foundation) Scholarship for students who participated in the University Interscholastic League and who wish to pursue a degree in chemistry,

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

, or

biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

. Currently $14,000 per student. *Research Grants support fundamental chemical research at universities, colleges, or other educational institutions within the state of Texas. *Departmental Grants support chemical research by members of the chemistry department faculty at educational institutions in Texas. *Endowed Chairs provide a faculty position for an eminent scientist. To be considered for an endowed chair, a Texas education institution must have a Ph.D. program in chemistry. * The Welch Foundation committed $100 million to establish the Welch Institute for Advanced Materials at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

. *Welch Summer Scholar Program is a hands-on summertime experience designed to give high school students a chance to learn more about research. This is a five-week program which immerses students, typically between their junior and senior years of high school in the intellectual atmosphere of working with chemists in their labs.

The Welch Institute for Advanced Materials

In September 2020, The Welch Foundation committed $100 million to establish the Welch Institute for Advanced Materials at

. The institute will be established as a joint venture between The Welch Foundation and Rice to perform research in advanced materials science. The goal of The Welch Institute is to attract top researchers from around the world to collaborate with Rice University's internationally renowned faculty and scientific resources, making the Institute a center of intellectual discovery, innovation and transformation in advanced materials.

References

External links

* Th
Welch Foundation website
{{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in Texas