Paying It Forward
Alumna's longtime passions inspired her to create scholarship
When Kimberly Ford Moon, W'83, transferred to the University of Richmond, she had never really traveled outside of her home state of New York. “I was like a fish out of water,” she said.
Kim grew up the youngest of three daughters and was the first in her family to attend college. Her parents didn’t place particular value in higher education, so Kim and her sisters were encouraged to attend secretarial school. After a year on this path, Kim made the decision to transfer, joining Westhampton College as an English major.
In a community unlike any she had been part of before, Kim found herself opening up to new ideas and interests at Richmond. At the urging of friend and fellow alumna, Cammie Dunaway, W’84, Kim became involved with will, a nationally recognized, four-year program for students interested in exploring gender and diversity studies. This interest ended up guiding her academic path; she was one of the first students to graduate from Richmond with a degree in women’s studies, in addition to her English degree.
When Kim thinks back on her time at UR, she is certain of one thing: her experience changed her life for the better. “It connected me with lifelong friends and with the field of women studies, [which] would inform all of my career choices and my personal viewpoints from then on," she said.
Kim returned to New York after graduation, where she met and married her husband, Tom Moon, a professional musician and writer. She began a career in the non-profit sector, working with many women-focused organizations and honing her expertise as a grant writer. Kim has remained active in the field of gender equity for decades, and in 2017, she co-founded Impact100 South Jersey, a female-run collective grantmaking organization.
In 2012, Kim decided to give back to her alma mater by endowing the Kimberly Ford Moon Scholarship. Each year, this need-based scholarship provides financial aid for a student who is majoring in English or women, gender, and sexuality studies.
"[Women] are often discouraged from pursuing these types of majors because they don’t seem practical, or that [they seem] limiting," she said. "I couldn’t disagree more — [that’s] why I created my scholarship. I want to affirm and support these choices in the hope that somebody else can benefit from all that these degrees can offer to impact one’s heart and one’s path in life.”
Since the establishment of the scholarship, more than ten students have benefited from Kim's gift. Her generosity will continue to support a student annually in perpetuity. She has also made provisions in her estate to build upon the existing fund, further ensuring that student financial need continues to be met at Richmond.
Looking back on her time at the University, Kim encourages students to make the most out of their undergraduate experience. “Embrace your time at Richmond, seize everything that it has to offer, and may your life be as changed as mine,” she said.
Because of donors like Kim, the University of Richmond can commit to meeting every undergraduate’s full financial need, making a Richmond education a reality for exceptional students who might not otherwise be able to attend. To learn more about how to endow a scholarship or make a gift to support undergraduate scholarships, please contact donorrelations@richmond.edu.