Stories
Making The Dream of College Possible For Others
The Jane Allen Newman Story
Due to the Great Depression and hard times at home, Jane Allen Newman was not able to realize her dream of going to college. But thanks to a legacy gift, she makes it possible for other hardworking Kentucky students to get their degrees.
Born in 1909 in Morganfield, Jane left home for Chicago at age 17 to work as a bookkeeper for Maybell Laboratories (soon to be Maybelline Cosmetics) just as the company was debuting eye shadow, eyeliner and mascara. Jane occasionally modeled Maybelline’s new products, appearing in the November 1936 issue of Vogue.
Over the course of her life, Jane bought stock, including Maybelline, and invested wisely. But despite her success, Jane always regretted not being able to go to college, so she made provisions in her will to establish the Jane Allen Newman Scholarship Fund with a gift of $570,000.
In a testament to the power of endowments and BGCF’s good stewardship, since Jane’s passing in 1996 the Jane Allen Newman Scholarship has awarded more than $520,000 to 102 Kentucky students.
The Jane Allen Newman Scholarship is for graduating seniors with significant financial need from Fayette, Harrison or Union counties. Preference is given to first-generation college students. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years of undergraduate study.