The Radcliffe Institute for Independent Study was founded in 1961 by the then-president of Radcliffe College, Mary Ingraham Bunting. Following Bunting's vision to stem the exodus of highly trained educated women from promising careers, the Institute provided stipends as well as access to all of the resources of Harvard University to take up their chosen creative intellectual studies. The initial funding for the institute came from the Carnegie and Rockefeller Foundations. The Institute was renamed the Bunting Institute in 1978 in honor of Dr. Bunting and also supported women wishing to pursue advanced degrees on a part-time basis.