Scholarship Comes From Fighting for LGBT Rights

EVANSTON, Ill. --- Northwestern University student, LGBT activist and hate crime survivor Arthur Jack (A.J.) Singletary was named a Point Foundation Scholar this week. The Point Foundation is the nation’s largest foundation dedicated to supporting deserving lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students in college and graduate school. 

As a student in the University’s joint JD-MBA program, a program of Northwestern School of Law and the Kellogg School of Management, Singletary has made the study of environmental law and clean energy a priority. Nature, he says, served as a refuge for him while growing up gay in rural Arkansas.

The survivor of a hate crime while living in the nation’s capital, Singletary chaired Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV), an organization working to reduce violence against members of the LGBT community and the city’s LGBT anti-violence task force. In this capacity, he helped lead a march protesting the hate violence plaguing the LGBT community in D.C. The efforts earned the support of city leaders and led to police department reforms.

At Northwestern, Singletary works to ensure that a protected environment is available for all individuals and to advance LGBT rights in the legal and business sectors. As co-president of OUTLaw, Northwestern Law’s LGBT student organization, he works to improve diversity in the legal profession and raise awareness of transgender legal rights.

The Point Foundation, which received more than 2,100 applications, gave 23 scholarships for the upcoming year. The foundation is particularly supportive of students who have lost the financial and social support of their families as a result of their sexual orientation or gender expression. The generous scholarships are awarded on the basis of need.

For information about the Point Foundation Scholars program or other scholarship programs, contact Amy Kehoe in the Office of Fellowships at amy.kehoe@northwestern.edu.