Thank you for supporting the Jeannette Rubinyi Scholarship in Earth and Life Sciences so we can continue to provide meaningful opportunities for our students and community.
Like a multifaceted gemstone, Jeannette Rubinyi was a person of multiple interests and talents. Long a lover of the natural world, she thoroughly enjoyed geological fieldtrips, amassing a large collection of rock specimens, heading the Santa Monica Gem and Mineral Society, and leading school tours as a Docent for the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.
Her fascination with gemstones eventually led her into jewelry making becoming an accomplished silversmith. Always of an artistic bent, she studied Chinese brush painting as well, often portraying scenes from nature, an interest which also informed her poetry.
And, in a way, even in her professional career as a Social Worker, she could see a parallel between her geological knowledge and her work with fellow human beings in need of support. She understood that a rough exterior may, with the proper encouragement and resources, contain the potential of a hidden gem within.
Remembering the struggles of her immigrant parents and a strong believer of the transformational power of education, she created a number of scholarships to help students on their educational journeys. At SMC these include the Emily Winestock Music Scholarship and the Shirley Leventhal Nursing Scholarship.
For donations by check, please make your check payable to:
The Santa Monica College Foundation
1900 Pico Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90405
On the memo line, please write: Jeannette Rubinyi Scholarship