Vol. 38, No. 18

2-4-2009
By: Jeff McCallister

Gee pledges $1M to endow new scholarship fund

It was one of the first ideas Gordon Gee communicated to the Ohio State community when he returned for his second term as president:

“Put Students First.”
 
That idea has been foremost among Gee’s thoughts since even before his first term here. It is the second of his Six Strategic Goals and is the spur behind the recently announced Students First initiative that offers help for currently enrolled students and their families in the face of economic hardship.

Now Gee has made a personal commitment to students to back the university’s.

Peter Weiler, senior vice president for development, has announced Gee’s pledge of $1 million to endow an as-yet unnamed scholarship fund that will cover tuition and fees for a student at every class rank going forward.

“I have been thinking about this gift for quite some time,” Gee said. “Leading Ohio State is one of the great blessings of my life. I am honored to be able to extend the vast opportunities of a university education to talented Ohioans regardless of their financial circumstances.”

The first scholarship will be awarded to an incoming freshman next autumn quarter; until the endowment is fully funded, Gee will make additional contributions to pay the $9,000 annual cost of the scholarship.

Weiler said he’ll make good use of Gee’s gift, as well as others such as the previously announced $1 million gift from outgoing Board of Trustees Chairman Gil Cloyd, to hold up as examples in the upcoming campaign.

“In his work, President Gee helps students every day,” Weiler said. “That he chooses to reach out directly on such a personal level is truly inspirational, and for that I thank him. I suspect we will read many more great stories as the result of his generosity, as over the years his scholarship recipients use their education he helped provide to do great, great things.”

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