ARCS Foundation, Inc. (Achievement Rewards for College Scientists) is an American nonprofit volunteer women's organization that promotes US competitiveness by providing financial awards to academically outstanding U.S. citizens studying to complete degrees in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and health disciplines at 51 of the nation's leading research universities.
[1] ARCS Foundation Scholars have produced thousands of research publications and patents, secured billions in grant funding, started science-related companies, and played a significant role in teaching and mentoring young people in the STEM pipeline.
ARCS Foundation also brought stronger focus to women's leadership in science philanthropy as the organization grew nationally.
More chapters followed, affiliating with the national organization to advocate for education and research and to engage public awareness of science challenges and successes.
Supported disciplines have expanded to include basic and applied scientific research in 42 areas of study, from agriculture to zoology, under parameters established by ARCS Foundation's founders and expressed by the objective as declared on the Caltech campus in Pasadena, CA on September 18, 1958: ".