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Jennifer J. Malin Endowment

College of Liberal Arts

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The Department of Psychology experienced a tragic loss when 26-year-old Jennifer Malin, a second-year graduate student studying for a doctorate in Social and Clinical Psychology, was killed in a car accident in Austin on October 26, 2013.

The Jennifer Jean Malin Endowed Fellowship in Psychology has since been created in Jenny’s memory by her parents, Jane and David Malin, and her boyfriend Michael Sullivan. Donations to the fund, which will help support graduate students in the Department of Psychology, can be made here. 

Although Jenny’s primary research interests at UT dealt with trauma and narrative, she was someone with a remarkably broad set of passions. She loved her community garden, birding and making a difference in the world. She was passionate about helping abused women and children. Her work with domestic abuse hotlines and a documentary film project eventually led her into psychology. She started graduate school at UT in Fall 2012.

Funds from the Malin Endowment will initially be used for travel awards to graduate students presenting research papers at national conferences, and research awards to support student-generated research projects. As the endowment grows, it will be used for fellowships that will allow Psychology graduate students to be devoted to their research full time during the summer.

Dr. Charles (Josh) Holahan, graduate advisor for the Department of Psychology, addressed the importance of such financial support for students: “Beyond teaching assistant and graduate research assistant stipends, the most important financial needs our graduate students face involve summer support, funding for travel to national conferences, and funds for student-generated research. The Jennifer J. Malin Endowment addresses all of these critical needs.”

He adds, “The fact that this endowment is in memory of one of our own deeply loved graduate students will add meaning and inspiration for every recipient of these awards.”

For more about Jennifer Malin, please see the Fall 2014 Department of Psychology Newsletter article here.