Crafting a Meaningful Life
Harry and Emilia Rathbun Fund for Exploring What Leads to a Meaningful Life
In this day and age when students are increasingly knowledgeable through classroom training and the demands of specializing are intense, students are thirsty for true wisdom. The Rathbun Fund has created both a timeless and timely opportunity to help Stanford deepen the student experience with a focus on thoughtful inquiry, the pursuit of happiness, and a dedication to making the world a better place.
Stanford is ideally suited for this opportunity, given its preeminence in educating world leaders and the emphasis of the university’s founding grant both on public welfare and “qualifying students for personal success and direct usefulness in life.” Leland and Jane Stanford, who were religious, but not committed to any denomination, decreed that the church would stand at the center of campus and also be non-sectarian. Adopting such a philosophy, they felt, would permit the church to serve the broadest spiritual needs of the entire university community—religious and nonreligious. The Stanfords also saw spiritual and moral values as essential to a young person’s education and future citizenship. As such, Stanford’s Office for Religious & Spiritual Life is located in the center of campus and, as one of only a few university-wide offices, plays a significant role as a convener for all members of the Stanford community, across schools and disciplines.

About Harry and Emilia Rathbun
Find out more about the personal story of Harry and Emilia Rathbun.

Rathbun Program Offerings
Explore the different types of programs offered through this dynamic program

Leading a Meaningful Life: Marshall Ganz
2022 Mimi and Peter E. Haas Distinguished Visitor
Join us in historical Memorial Church as Marshall Ganz shares insight into his personal values, beliefs, and motivations in order to gain a deeper understanding of life’s meaning. Q&A with the audience will follow.

Rathbun Activism Summit
In the spirit of Harry and Emilia Rathbun’s work to advance Stanford students’ development as citizens of the world, we gathered virtually for conversations, panels and experiences with activists who are tackling the issues impacting their lives and futures, such as racial injustice, climate change, gun violence, and gender and LBGTQ equality.