Roberta M. Berns Child Development Legacy Scholarship

This endowed scholarship is a tribute to Roberta M. Berns, who taught at Saddleback College for 30 years. Roberta is author to the best-selling Child, Family, School, Community: Socialization and Support. The textbook has been adopted by hundreds of colleges worldwide and examines how the school, family, and community influence children’s socialization. Roberta Berns founded and chaired the Human Development Department at Saddleback College and also served as a professor at the University of California, Irvine. Roberta’s husband, Dr. Michael Berns, is a renowned UC Irvine Microbiologist Professor/Researcher and co-founder of the Beckham Laser Institute. Michael and Roberta were high school sweethearts; both attended Cornell University and shared 56 years together before she passed away Spring 2015. One of their two children is Tammy Karn, a longtime faculty member in the Mt. SAC English Department.

This scholarship is intended to inspire students with a passion for working with young children and their families and provide financial support to complete an AS or AS-T in Child Development. An applicant must have completed 12 semester units at Mt. SAC with an overall minimum GPA of 3.0. An applicant must be a Child Development major working toward completion of AS or AS-T in Child Development and demonstrate financial need to be eligible for this award. Students applying for this scholarship must enroll in Child Development classes at Mt. SAC for Fall and the following Spring. This scholarship is granted to a recipient one time only.